Ashville Academy
by Love Is My Weapon
Summary: After their father's death, the Utonium's are sent to live in a Boarding school in Kansas for the next two years. Just when things couldn't get any worse, they run into their reformed ex enemies; The Rowdyruff Boys. (Original pairings.)
1. Welcome To Ashville

**Ashville High**

_**~ Hello, Allison Peirce here, for those of you who do not already know me. In this new story of mine, there is a little bit of everything - Action, romance, humour, drama, suspense, angst. I do hope you enjoy this pilot chapter. Thank you all of those Townsville High readers that have came to read this story (You are all absolute angels!) And also thank you to the new readers. (: ~**_

**Summary: After their father's death, the Utonium's are sent to live in a Boarding school in Kansas for the next two years. Just when things couldn't get any worse, they run into their reformed ex enemies; The Rowdyruff Boys.**

**Disclaimer; I do not own The Powerpuff Girls, nor any of the characters. All I own is the two original characters featured in this chapter.**

**AN: I'd like to point out that this story is very different from Townsville High. I made a lot of mistakes in that story, I made wrong choices, which is why I've been planning this one for over four months, just to make sure that I don't mess up on anything. Also, Mitch will not feature in this story - I had a lot of mixed opinions with him in Townsville High. And there will be no mixed romance (As in no mixed pairings or a Non-original-character paired with one of my original characters. None of that will be happening.) So, with all of that said, I hope you like the début of Ashville Academy!**

* * *

_Oh, you can't hear me cry._

_See my dreams all die._

_From where you're standing,_  
_On your own._  
_It's so quiet here,_  
_And I feel so cold._  
_This house no longer,_  
_Feels like home._

_- Ben Cocks, So Cold_

XoXoXoXo

Wednesday, January 2nd, 2013.

As she stared out the window of her best friend's bedroom, Blossom Utonium pulled her pink cotton sweater tight around herself. She watched as cars drove by and strangers mingled outside of shops. It had been like this for a while - peaceful. A town that was once under constant threat by villains hoping to make a quick buck or just to ruin someone's happiness had turned into a quaint, normal town. Blossom thought back on all of the villains that she used to face; Most of them skipped town years ago, the rest had either been locked up in the new high-security Townsville Prison or had become reformed. The town was finally at peace.

While this was a good thing, it also meant that Blossom as well as her sisters had no obligation. At first it was seen as a gift, however as the years went by, Blossom realised that she missed the excitement. She missed seeing a smile on someone's face and knowing that she had put it there. She missed being needed. It had been three years since Townsville changed, and Blossom still felt the withdrawal. With Townsville finally safe and her life's mission being completed, Blossom lost all of her powers, as well as her sisters. It wasn't subtle either. One morning they woke up to find their powers wiped. Just like that, a huge part of their life was gone. Blossom took it the worst. While Bubbles was glad that she got to be a normal teenage girl and Buttercup was just happy that she didn't have to get up early to fight villains, Blossom felt like she didn't know who she was without her powers, or without her title as the protector of Townsville.

Blossom finally tore her gaze away from the window and looked over her shoulder. The room was quite small and dimly lit, but Blossom could still see her sisters clearly. Sat on the ink black rug, soft and fluffy, was Bubbles. The short blonde was dressed in her favourite pair of pajamas; A blue long-sleeved shirt and pants covered in white stars. She was laughing, and it made Blossom grin, she couldn't remember that last time that Bubbles had laughed like that. Chuckling along with her, sitting on the only bed in the room, was Buttercup. She was sprawled across the silk purple sheets on the bed, her green eyes narrowed from all of the excitement. And finally, Robin Schneider, the sweet brunette best friend of the Utoniums, sat on her rug in front of Bubbles. There was this tight, unbreakable grin on her face, and Blossom knew that she had just told them something important. She knew Robin well, and that grin was unmistakable.

"He did _what!?_" Came the shrill scream of Bubbles' voice. Her blue eyes, wide as dinner plates, stared into the fellow blue eyes of Robin. Her scream seemed to vibrate throughout the entire bedroom causing Buttercup to cover her ears with both hands. "Are you for real?"

Blossom raised her eyebrow, wondering what all of the commotion was. She had managed to tune out most of the conversation. But from the look on Bubbles' face, she knew that something interesting had just been said. Sliding off of the windowsill, the aubrun-haired Utonium began to walk over to her best friend. Robin looked up as soon as Blossom made her presence known.

"Can you believe it?" Robin boasted to her three best friends. Her shoulders swayed back and forth along with her upper body, doing a small dance while sat down. "Mitch actually asked me out. Like, on an actual date."

Eyes filling with surprise, Blossom felt herself gasp and smile at the same time. "Really?"

"It's about time," Buttercup interjected. She rolled her eyes. "You and Mitchelson have been making googly-eyes at each other for years. I was starting to think you were both too stubborn to admit that you liked each other."

Robin's smile transformed into a pout. "I'm not stubborn. I was just too shy to say anything. Either way, it doesn't matter, because we're finally going out! He's taking me to that new Chinese place on Saturday. It's going to be so romantic." The brunette spoke softly as she fell backwards, landing on her back and sighing dreamily.

Blossom looked at her sisters, her smile growing wider. She was overcome by happiness for her friend, as well as a tad of jealousy as she compared Robin's love life to her own. While she had had her fair share of relationships, Blossom had never really had a successful one. She had crushes. Although she had never been in love, hence the jealousy. Robin and Mitch were so clearly in love. Blossom and her sisters had came to conclusion months before. Mitch would always pair up with Robin for science class, he would make her laugh, he was the first to console her when her ex boyfriend Mike broke up with her. And Robin, she was more obvious than Mitch was about it. She always dressed extra nice whenever she knew Mitch would be around, she laughed at his stupid jokes even though no one found them funny, and she always got shy when he would compliment her. Blossom was shocked that neither of them realised the attraction until years had passed.

"That's great, Robin. I'm ecstatic for you." Blossom spoke as she took a seat beside Robin.

"We are too, right Buttercup?" Bubbles asked, jabbing Buttercup in the leg.

Buttercup nodded. "Totally. You know I'm not a fan of the mushy stuff though, so no kissing in front of me please."

Robin's cheeks turned a slight rosy colour. "We won't be kissing, it's_ just_ a date. Who knows if he'll even ask me out again."

"Come on, Robin," Blossom frowned. "I'm sure that he'll ask you to be his girlfriend."

"Hmm," The brunette smiled, looking up at the ceiling. She nodded to herself. "I hope so."

Before Bubbles could get the chance to let out an ear-spitting squeal again, there was a knock at Robin's bedroom door. All head's turned just in time to see Jasmine Schnieder - Robin's mother - walk through. Her curled brown hair covered her sea blue eyes, but for some reason, the girl's could still make out small red blotches hiding underneath said eyes. Robin's concern for her mother showed all over her face.

"Is everything alright, mom?"

Jasmine swallowed the lump in her throat. "Robin, I need to speak with Buttercup, Blossom and Bubbles for a moment. Do you mind?"

Robin glanced at her friends, who's faces all seemed to hold the exact same expression; confusion. She turned back to look at her mother, just then noticing that her voice came out rough, as though she had been crying only moments ago. The red marks under her eyes only seemed to add to the assumption. Robin wasn't sure what was happening, and neither did either of the girls. Instead of questioning her mother, Robin nodded.

"Um, sure, of course." She said.

Jasmine tried to smile, but it just wouldn't happen. "Girls, please come into the living room?"

Standing up, the Utonium's all shared a glance. There was a worried look in Bubbles' eyes. She didn't like where this was going. Blossom quickly took Bubbles' hand and let her towards the door. The auburn-haired girl was so confused. She tried to keep her mind clear, to not jump to conclusions, but her mind was failing. Why else would Jasmine want to talk to them without Robin? Unless something terrible had happened?

They followed Jasmine into the living room. It was a nice living room - decorated nicely with a thin black carpet, a warm fireplace, painted cream walls and expensive looking black curtains. Even the television was hung onto the second wall with hooks, easily seen when sitting in the two leather couches pressed up against the sides of the first and third wall, opposite each other. The living room seemed to be the only well decorated room in the house though - every other room was filled with mediocre furniture and wallpapered walls.

Blossom and her sisters all took seats on one of the leather couches while Jasmine paced back and fourth in front of them. The girls knew Robin's mother very well, having known her for nine years and talking to her many times when staying over at Robin's home. This was why neither of them knew what to think. Jasmine never got nervous, not once, she even had 'the talk' with Robin after she first started dating Mike, and as Robin had described she seemed at ease. Yet Jasmine was clearly very nervous. That couldn't be good.

"Why did you want to talk to us alone, Miss Schneider?" Bubbles spoke up.

Jasmine turned to look at the blonde, stopping her pacing. "It's um, it's about John. I have no idea how I'm supposed to- _Oh god_." Jasmine went back to her pacing, running a hand through her mahogany hair. Yes, she was definitely nervous.

"Huh?" Buttercup mumbled. "What about the professor? Does he need to go away on business again?" She asked, referring to the time that her and her sisters spent a whole week staying with Robin and Jasmine considering John had to take a trip to Millan to discuss one of his latest inventions. Although Buttercup didn't even seem convinced with her own words. There was no way that Jasmine would act this panicked over having to look after the Utoniums for a week.

"Miss Schneider, what is going on?" Blossom asked, shredding Buttercup's question, as she too knew that this was obviously more than another business trip. She watched as Jasmine turned to look at them all, and her eyes were surely filled with tears now.

"I have something to tell you," The forty year old woman began. "I just got off the phone with the police department-"

"Was dad arrested!?" Buttercup exclaimed, almost rising up from her seat.

"No, he wasn't," Jasmine held both of her hands up. She shook her head, a frown appearing on her youthful face. "They told me that there was an accident. Oh, girls, there was a fire at your house twenty minutes ago."

Three sets of eyes widened.

Blossom was the first that dared to speak.. "A fire? Is everything alright? I mean, our father will have somewhere for us all to stay right?"

Jasmine shook her head. "Honey, John...he didn't make it."

For a second, no one moved, no one spoke, they barely breathed. Blossom's eyes stayed glued to Jasmine's as she shook her head slowly without even realising it. She was too afraid to look anywhere else. From beside her, she could hear Bubbles let out a sob which was soon muffled as she shot her hand up to cover her mouth. Jasmine continued to watch them all, ready to console them when they finally let the information sink in, but the waiting was the hardest part. She just wanted to rush over and pull them all into a hug right there and then. But she gave them some space for a couple of moments.

Bubbles turned to look at Blossom, only to find that their eyes could not meet. It was as if Blossom was in a catatonic dreamlike state. Her wise pink eyes still hadn't left Jasmine's, even though Jasmine had looked away a couple of times, she just stared at the same spot. And although she was looking, it seemed like she wasn't actually seeing anything. Bubbles then looked at Buttercup. She didn't find Buttercup in a dreamlike state, no, Buttercup didn't look sad, she looked pissed if anything.

"You're lying!" Buttercup screamed in accusation. She jumped to her feet, ignoring Bubbles trying to paw at her arm and make her sit back down. Buttercup shook her head frantically. "The Professor isn't dead. That's insane, no, _you're_ insane!"

Jasmine frowned. "Buttercup, I am so sorry, but this is the truth. I wish it wasn't but..."

"No! I'm going home, I don't want to hear anymore of this."

"Buttercup! Watch," Jasmine yelled. Turning towards the television, she picked up the remote on the coffee table and clicked the television on. She turned over to the news channel, just in time to cut into the footage of John's tragic accident. "I'm not lying to you, honey."

As soon as the noise of the television reporter's voice boomed into the room, Blossom broke out of her catatonic dreamlike state. She turned her gaze towards the television, unable to breathe properly as her heart raced inside of her chest. All three Utonium's eyes grew wide as they stared at the screen. Their three story house - the place they had called home for eleven years - was burnt to a crisp. The damage was horrible, there was barely anything recognisable about the house. Police cars, fire trucks and an ambulance surrounded the scene - but the ambulance was empty. There was no way they could save John.

"The scene was discovered by John Utonium's neighbour," The reporter spoke into her microphone. "The entire house was up in flames. The firemen reported that the cause of the fire was a gas leak. By the time that the fire engine got here, the house was too unstable to get inside, the roof collapsed onto the first floor. John Utonium was confirmed deceased ten minutes later once a fireman finally got in to find him. His three daughters were not in the house - and the neighbour confirmed that they were staying at a friend's house. This really is a tragic accident, and our prayers go out to those close to Mr Utonium," She seemed genuine. But of course she was. Everyone in Townsville adored John. "I'm Joan Richman and this is Townsville News."

Bubbles once again looked over at Blossom. Only this time she wasn't perfectly still, she was shaking. Blossom took a deep breath and held it, and she held it even longer, unwilling to let it out. The only thing that went through Blossom's mind was; I'll never see him again. Never was a long time to hurt this bad. She felt like someone had punched her in the stomach, pushed her to her knees, just left her there to feel the pain. She soon came back to reality when she heard Bubbles crying beside her. She shoved away her own shock and pulled Bubbles into her, rubbing her back in comfort, and she cried. She cried for so long.

"I'm so sorry, girls." Jasmine's voice was the last thing that Blossom and Bubbles heard until the sound of a door slamming echoed throughout the room. And Buttercup was gone.

* * *

_"I used to dream about escaping my ordinary life, but my life was never ordinary. I had simply failed to notice how extraordinary it was. Likewise, I never imagined that home might be something I would miss." - Ransom Riggs, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children_

Sunday, February 3rd, 2013 - Present Time

Buttercup Utonium's eyes fluttered shut in thought. She listened to the steady rain dropping and sliding down the windows of the ink black car she was currently occupying. Buttercup and her sisters had only been in Ashville for an hour and already she seemed to despise it. The scorching sun of Townsville had now been replaced by the thunderous rain of Kansas. Buttercup found herself wondering if it could get any worse. But of course, she knew it could. With her luck, it could only get so much worse from here on out.

She tried not to think about all of the things that she would miss. Her friends. Her school. Her life. Most importantly, the home where she once sat around the kitchen table with her sisters and her now deceased father. Whenever Buttercup allowed herself to think about all of those things, she found herself grieving in silence. She didn't mind the pain anymore, because that at least meant that there was still a little humanity left inside of her.

Buttercup fixed her gaze on the car window, an impassive look plastered all over her pale face. She could hear the soft music playing through the car radio, strumming a song that she did not recognise. She felt herself let out a small, frustrated breath as she absentmindedly observed the droplets of rain roll down the clear window. Buttercup didn't like rain. Rain reminded her of her father. Once when she was younger she asked John why it barely seemed to rain in Townsville. John replied to her, "Because this is Townsville, Buttercup." She didn't understand back then but she did now. Sunshine always seemed to linger throughout Townsville, even when there was none to be seen.

But this was not Townsville.

"So, tell me again," Buttercup's voice broke the stiff silence. "Why exactly do we have to go to this stupid, fancy boarding school anyway?" Her gaze did not leave the window, but she could still sense that her sisters were staring at her, shooting her a look of mild frustration.

"We have been over this," Blossom Utonium answered quietly. "Robin's mother could not afford to look after us as well as her own daughter, and Mr Mitchelson couldn't take us in because of his own money troubles. We no longer have a legal guardian. Ashville Academy is the only choice."

Buttercup sucked in a sharp breath, resisting the urge to softly bang her head against the thick car window. She had heard that same answer over and over. No matter how many times Blossom or Bubbles explained the situation to her, Buttercup still couldn't overcome the immense feeling that this was all just a terrible dream that she would one day wake up from. Although it all began to fell more real to her as she observed the dreadfully dull sign of 'Ashville Academy' in the distance.

"We all know that he never would have wanted this for us. The Professor would have-"

"Stop," Blossom cut her sister off instantly. "We made a deal. We don't talk about dad. Not today."

Buttercup's cold emerald eyes met with Blossom's. They battled each other silently, neither daring to break the intense gaze. Sitting in between them, Bubbles Utonium was looking back and fourth, trying to decide who's side she should take. Bubbles was always so confused by their relationship. Her sisters always got on so well. She often found herself jealous, believing that Blossom and Buttercup were closer to each other than Bubbles was with either of them. They told each other everything, they hung out even when their friends weren't around, just in general they got on like best friends would. Yet they still fought like alley cats. Bubbles always felt stuck right in the middle of their arguments but lucky that she was never on the other side of them.

After what seemed like an eternity of silence, Buttercup sighed in defeat.

"Fine." She conceded reluctantly.

Bubbles watched as Buttercup glanced back out of the car window. The short blonde's thin eyebrows furrowed. Buttercup never conceded an argument. She could tell that Buttercup was hurting, every single day, although she wouldn't allow herself to show it. Bubbles always seemed to know how everyone was feeling, it was both a gift and a curse. She could see that Buttercup was always holding her tough exterior but inside she was still reeling from the aftermath of John's death. That was the thing about Buttercup's tough exterior - it was a cheat. You couldn't just ignore all forms of bad emotion, you had to feel them and move on. But Buttercup prefered to fight off all of it.

The black Maserati began to slow down drastically, diverting the Utonium's attention towards the sight before them. Ashville Academy was without a sliver of doubt the largest school they had ever seen. There was a large building standing tall at the front, the walls painted smokey white from head-to-toe. Two slightly smaller cream coloured buildings stood behind the first. Surrounding all the three buildings was a thick layer of freshly cut grass and scarlet Camellia flowers, none of which drooping. The bricked roofs were all red, matching the flowers underneath. The tough tower-like gate was stirling silver. It looked sturdy enough to keep the students trapped inside like prisoners.

Buttercup almost rolled her eyes at that thought alone. No escape. She whispered goodbye to her master plan to sneak out and hitch a ride to Mexico where they would never find her.

Although Ashville seemed as dull as a town could possibly get, this one school shined a little light and effortless beauty into the city. It was spectacular. Blossom felt herself ease immediately as she gazed upon the flowers and rose bushes. If she remembered correctly, red Camellia flowers promoted excellence and perfection. The meaning of the name seemed fitting for such a school. She knew that her sisters would have a hard time enjoying their experience here, however Blossom was determined to enjoy herself, no matter how tough it got.

Buttercup was the first to step out of the car. She held her head high as she observed her new home from afar. She smiled to herself - one day she would escape. No gate could keep her in. The black laced combat boots she was wearing clicked along the ground. She spun herself around to close the car door, slamming it shut as if believing that such a small action could relieve the intense anger that she wanted to release. Blossom and Bubbles stepped out of the car from the other side, swiftly raising their arms over their heads to shield themselves from the pouring rain.

"This place is beautiful," Bubbles spoke in a breathless tone. She sized up the building, her bright sapphire eyes gleaming in wonder. "It's not what I had expected." The blonde admitted quietly.

"It's _not_ beautiful." Buttercup scoffed. She pulled her Rick Owens biker jacket tighter around her slim form, as if seeking comfort from the grim leather.

Blossom ignored Buttercup's cynical tone and turned her full attention towards the driver, whom by the look of it, appeared to be in his late thirties-early forties. She sent him a soft, thankful smile before his hands returned to the wheel of his Maserati. Blossom watched as the driver sped off into the daylight, shredding all chance of getting back to their one true home, Townsville. She turned to look at Buttercup, whom was glancing from left to right, clearly looking to see if anyone was in sight.

"Buttercup." Blossom's silky voice tensed in warning. She knew her sister better than the back of her own hand, it was obvious to her that Buttercup would try to run away at the first she got. But Blossom couldn't allow her to run off. She didn't want her sister to get them into any sort of trouble while they were in this town, but that of course was like asking Bubbles to dye her hair. It was completely impossible.

The dark-haired Utonium rolled her eyes. She let out an exasperated and childish groan before directing her attention back towards the school that would soon become her home. She stared unenthusiastically at the white walls. A small, hopeful smirk destroyed her weary expression as she began to meticulously calculate some cunning ways to escape her new prison.

Just as she began thinking of how she would break free before even stepping foot inside, Buttercup heard the front door of the smallest building open. A tall, agelessly beautiful woman walked out and closed the door behind her. The Utonium's watched as the woman began working her way towards them, strutting glamorously in lavender Christian Louboutin stilettos. The confident smile dropped from Buttercup's face as she glared at the woman. Her golden blonde hair was held up in a high bun, halting strands from shielding her vision.

"You must be the Utonium girls." The woman spoke in excitement. Her voice was overly sophisticated, and didn't seem to fit her overall appearance.

"That's us," Blossom answered cheerfully after a moment of muteness. She extended her hand towards the blonde whom proceeded to shake it in a form of introduction. "The school is stunning. We cannot wait to get acquainted."

Buttercup's eyes rolled. Her sister always spoke for them, trying to sound as if all three Utoniums were just as refined and amicable as she herself was. Buttercup sometimes got the impression that Blossom wasn't pleased with how she and Bubbles acted in situations such as this. But that only added to her charm. Blossom was a Grade A perfectionist, which meant that if something wasn't considered perfect, she had to make it appear to be.

The woman smiled, her deep green eyes showing pride. She was beautiful, the girls noticed, and she took care of herself well. Her skin was smooth and tanned, and there wasn't even a hint of a blemish on her ageless face. Her stature was tall, she must have been about 5'9. Her lips were thin and naturally blush pink. Everything about her screamed beauty. It was hard to tell her age - but Blossom assumed she had to have been in her late twenties. Anything older than that would have been a shock.

"I'm thrilled to hear that," The tan skinned woman drawled. "My name is Holiday Sinclair. I'm in charge of the students, I'll help you settle into the school and I'll make sure you're comfortable here. I would like to take this opportunity to welcome you all to Ashville. I am certain that this experience will change you all for the better."

The short silence was filled with a snort of derision.

Blossom shot her head towards Buttercup, a stern expression painted all over her face. Buttercup smiled sheepishly at her sister, fighting back the urge to smirk brashly. The two sisters stared each other off once more as if just asking for an argument. But Buttercup wasn't worried. Blossom would never come to blows in front of a respected staff member of the school, she didn't like to cause scenes or appear less than responsible.

"Well," Holiday broke the tension, dusting invisible lint from her thistle coloured Ponte dress. "If you will all come with me, I'll bring you to the office and we can continue this meeting."

Holiday spun on her heels and began walking towards the first building in sight; The large one with the smokey white walls and large windows. As the Utonium's began to follow, Blossom discreetly pulled Buttercup's arm and walked by her side, holding a tight death grip on her sister's upper arm. Buttercup glanced at Blossom, sheer amusement dancing in her forest eyes.

"Would it kill you to be polite?" Blossom whispered sharply.

The sides of Buttercup's lips curved into a half-smirk. "Would it kill you to stop acting like a posh bitc-"

"Buttercup!" Bubbles scolded from beside Blossom. "Can you please just stop fighting? At least wait until tomorrow morning before you are at each other's throats again."

Blossom and Buttercup exchanged a glare, both reluctant to let their argument go. Eventually Blossom released her sister's arm and continued walking with her head held high. Buttercup sent a glance to her other sister, whom was smiling sweetly up at her. Bubbles always seemed to be the peace-maker of the family, it was hard to say no to her, even for Buttercup.

"Let's just get this day over with." Buttercup muttered.

Holiday opened the white double-doors, a wide grin on her face, as if she was excited to see their reactions. She held the heavy door open for the Utonium's to walk inside. Blossom followed by her sisters entered the school, or the mansion as Buttercup was thinking. It certainly didn't look like a run of the mill Boarding school. Their feet was immediately met by a dark carpet, contrasting well with the teal coloured walls.

Although Buttercup was glancing around the room with very little interest, Blossom and Bubbles were practically gushing in awe. It was beautiful - no, more than that. Spectacular was the only word that came to mind. The entire hall looked too good to be true, like it had been photoshopped to perfection. Everything fit so well in the room, right down to the delicate paintings of the Kansas shore hanging on every wall, the fuchsia flowers on every table and the blinding crystal chandelier looming over their heads. Strangely enough it was like something out of a run-down cliché fairytale.

"So. What do you think?" Holiday asked with an anticipating smile lighting up her face.

"It's very nice, Mrs Sinclair." Blossom spoke absentmindedly. Her lips were moving yet her eyes were bouncing around the room, trying to take everything in.

The statuesque blonde chuckled. "Excellent. I am pleased that you like the facility. Please wait here whilst I go fetch your timetables for classes tomorrow."

Blossom could barely hear Holiday as her eyes feasted upon the room. She had expected much less than this. Most Boarding schools were not as sophisticated or beautiful as this one. Truth be told, Blossom would never have guessed that such a place could be set in Ashville. She made a mental note to forbid herself from expecting the worst from now on.

"Thank God she's gone," Buttercup muttered as soon as Holiday was out of sight. "Her perfume was making me nauseas. Why does she have to wear so much of it?" She moaned grimly.

"Why are you being so negative about everything?" Bubbles asked in a small voice.

Buttercup's thin eyebrow raised. "Gee, I don't know, Bubbs. Maybe it's because we're being _forced_ to live in this place until we're eighteen; which is in two freaking years. No matter how beautiful the school is, it's still our prison."

"We should at least try and get used to it," Bubbles began. "Come on, try to enjoy the fact that we get to experience this whole new adventure. We get to meet new friends and learn new skills. And no one here knows us or our story. No one knows that we're ex superheros that lost their magical abilities. We get to feel normal for once."

A thick silence passed after Bubbles' speech. Even Blossom pulled herself away from her Ashville Academy filled trance to stare at her sister with soft eyes. The sisters all shared a three-way glance and didn't say a word. It felt like forever since someone had mentioned their loss of fame and power. It felt like only yesterday to the girls, but all in all, they had been living the façade of being normal for the most of three years now.

Just as the muteness began to seem never ending, Holiday's high voice broke out.

"Your timetables!" She spoke excitedly as she rushed over. She practically shoved three pieces of laminated paper into Blossom's hands. The red-head looked at Holiday, startled, before taking hold of the papers and handing one to each of her sisters.

"Thank you." Bubbles said sweetly, giving her a warm smile.

Blossom studied her timetable closely, her wise pink eyes fluttering in wonder. All of the classes seemed basic although she didn't enjoy there being only three classes per day. Nevertheless, she seemed impressed. She raised her hand to tuck a lingering strand of soft auburn hair behind her right ear, leaving the rest to fall down her back. She had always had particularly long hair. After turning sixteen, she decided against cutting it, letting it continue to linger around her waist line.

Many girls that had passed Blossom in Townsville stared at her in envy. Even her best friend, Robin, found herself staring every now and then. Blossom was the type of girl that wasn't aware of her genuine beauty. She had always been the tallest out of her sister, giving her the adored long legs that most people would kill for. Her face was structured well with a firm-set jaw, a straight nose, clear complexion and a small amount of auburn freckles gracing her cheeks.

Of course, Blossom was too wrapped up in her mind to notice the beautiful outside that she had been gifted with.

Holiday's cheerful face turned serious; and boy, it was terrifying. "Now I must inform you of the rules that you must stand by."

Blossom and Bubbles suddenly tensed. They cast sly glances towards Buttercup. The dark-haired Utonium's face had turned red in livid rage, steam practically began spurting from her ears. If there was one thing that Buttercup hated, it was rules. And if there was something she hated even more than rules, it was being told to do something. Blossom began to worry, her clever pink eyes shooting a warning glance towards her sister before she could say something she may later regret.

"Rules?" Buttercup asked slowly, spitting the word out as if it were venom.

"Yes, rules. First of all, we do not appreciate misbehaving students. If you talk out of line once then you will sorely regret it. Now, all years are allowed to leave the building on weekends and also on Fridays, on the condition that you are not to leave any earlier than 10 am and you must be back inside your dorm room, ready for bed, at 12 pm. If anyone breaks curfew then they are not allowed outside of their room for a whole month - excluding classes and the common room. The same goes for if a female is caught in the room of a male and vise versa."

Buttercup pouted her lips and nodded, a small hint of mischief running through her eyes.

"And what if we go out and just..don't come back?" Buttercup asked, earning a sharp elbow in her side from Blossom. She turned to look at Blossom with eyes. Blossom sent her another look of warning before turning back to Holiday.

"If anyone attempts to run away, the police will be involved."

Buttercup's eyes closed as she let out a sigh of frustration. She kissed goodbye to her plan of escape that she had been working on the whole ride there. She didn't want to get into any unnecessary trouble while she was here. That still wouldn't stop her from causing some harmless trouble though. Buttercup smirked to herself as she began planning an all together new plan, one that involved the can of spray paint hidden in her suitcase and Holiday's car.

"Now for your rooms. Blossom and Bubbles, you two shall be sharing room 47. And Buttercup, you have been assigned a room that is lacking of a secondary student." Holiday informed them.

Roommate, Buttercup thought. In that moment she began to think about how she would handle having a roommate. The girl would be someone that she would have to see every morning when she woke up and every night before she went to bed. It had never occurred to her that she might have to accommodate a room without either of her sisters in it. Buttercup wasn't sure if she was alright with it. She didn't like meeting new people. It made her feel vulnerable, just the fact that she knows nothing about them. Buttercup liked to know everything about her friends, to make sure she could trust them. But she knew nothing of this girl.

"Buttercup, come on."

The dark-haired teenager glanced up to the sound of Blossom's voice. She noticed her sisters and Holiday making their way towards the door, no doubt to show them to their new rooms. Buttercup quickly gathered her bearings and walked towards them all, her mind a million miles away.

Buttercup followed Holiday outside, her eyes narrowing as the thunderous rain of Kansas once more hit her. She raised one of her arms over her head to shield herself momentarily. She strolled behind the tan skinned woman until they stood before one of the other buildings. This building was cream coloured and slightly larger than the other. Nevertheless, it was equally as magnificent.

As she stepped inside, Buttercup ran her fingers through her short black hair. The frustration was written clear on her face. Ten minutes in this place and she was ready to scream. She absentmindedly tugged at the collar of her leather biker jacket, her green eyes scanning the new enviroment.

As well as her auburn haired sister, Buttercup wasn't aware of her head-turning appearance. Truth be told she had never thought of herself as the girl that made fellow females stare in envy or made the male population awestruck. However over the years Buttercup had grown into a rather attractive young woman.

A waterfall of shiny, thin black hair reached just under her shoulders. The bright sheen of her midnight locks always managed to bring out the emerald green of her eyes making them sparkle mysteriously. Her skin was smooth to the touch, the texture giving the impression of fine silk. She also towered over her blonde sister, coming in as the second tallest Utonium. Her legs seemed as though they could go on for miles. She had naturally long eyelashes and thin eyebrows. Even her cheekbones were perfect, making her smile even more ravishing, if only she showed it more. Although Buttercup couldn't see it, even Blossom found herself envying the unseen beauty of her sister.

"There are three floors in this building," Holiday's velvety voice called out. "The first floor is the mix of female and male rooms between the ages of fourteen and fifteen. The second floor is for the sixteen and seventeen year olds. And finally, the top floor is for the eighteen year olds," She turned to the dark-haired Utonium. "Buttercup, your dorm number is forty-six, on the opposite side from Blossom and Bubbles' room."

Blossom's lips curved into a smile. "Thank you, Mrs Sinclair."

"Please, call me Holiday," The blonde woman waved her hand. "You can go up to your rooms now. I'll fetch your luggage that was sent over this morning and bring it up to you as soon as humanly possible."

With that said, Holiday spun herself around and began walking away, the heels that adorned her feet clicking painfully loud as she did so. Buttercup took a step forward, heading towards the stairs. The staircase was so red that it stood out more than anything else in the room, and the golden banister shined brightly, adding more attention. Buttercup had caught a glimpse of an elevator lurking in the back of the room. She squinted her eyes at it. Was there really any point of having both a staircase and an elevator? Buttercup was dying to ask someone that very question.

Blossom and Bubbles followed their sister up the stairs, eager to see the room that they would be sleeping in for the next two years.

"Come to my room after you've checked out your own," Buttercup told her sisters as she walked. "If I don't like my roommate, I'll need you two to stop me from causing a scene." She said - only half joking - and sported a bittersweet smirk, causing both Blossom and Bubbles to roll their eyes.

"I'm sure she'll be lovely." Blossom commented, praying that as usual she was right.

As the girls reached the second floor, they parted ways. Blossom and Bubbles skipped excitedly into their bedroom, leaving their sister to cautiously poke her head into her own.

Buttercup's eyes narrowed as she laid eyes on her roommate. The girl was sitting on the floor in front of a television screen, a game controller in her hand. As Buttercup glanced towards the screen she noticed that the girl was playing Zoom Racers 3, which just happened to be Buttercup's all-time favourite video game. The dark-haired Utonium felt herself ease slightly. They had something in common. That was a good sign.

The stranger's midnight eyes were fixed onto the small, block-like television screen. The smallest whisper of a smile was adorning her full pink lips. Her fingers were violently slamming down on the circular buttons of the X-Box controller as if her life depended on it. As she played the game, her body swayed back and fourth in unison with the violet Corvette on the television screen.

Buttercup raised her eyebrow as she stepped inside the room. "They have video games in this place? Hmm. Maybe it isn't as bad as I thought."

As the girl took notice of Buttercup's presence and looked up, Buttercup took the chance to size her up. She was beautiful, Buttercup noticed, but she wasn't beautiful like those girls in the magazines. She had a more girl-next-door look. Her long hair was a rich shade of mahogany, fanning around her face in a feathered style. Radiant blue eyes, framed by long lashes, stood out thanks to her stunning porcelain-esque skin. There was a small amount of tan freckles dusted across her high cheeks and straight nose. All in all, she didn't look like the type of girl that would be sitting in a boarding school playing video games.

"Actually, you have to earn the right to use electrical devices," The girl spoke. "I happen to know a member of staff that is very open to bribes." She finished with a small smile.

The girl sat her game controller on the floor in front of her before rising up to her feet. Buttercup took notice that she was rather tall, taller than her and most likely Blossom as well. She looked at Buttercup from head-to-toe, her soft blue eyes shining in admiration.

"I'm Daisey," The brunette spoke, her thick Australian accent flowing like smooth velvet. There was an air of cheerfulness that surrounded Daisey as she spoke. It was like nothing Buttercup had ever seen before. "You must be my new roommate."

Daisey took a step forward, allowing Buttercup to catch a good glimpse at her outfit. A cropped jean jacket paired with a tight-fitting white blouse covered her slim top-half. A ruffled, blush pink, floral print skirt emphasized her long, creamy legs. Finishing off the outfit was a thick cream belt wrapped around her small waist. While it was an outfit that Buttercup wouldn't be caught dead in, she found it rather interesting.

"That would be me," Buttercup responded. "I'm Buttercup."

The brunette stared at Buttercup. For a moment she just stood there, void of all emotion or movement, almost as thought she wasn't sure how act properly around a stranger. Buttercup just assumed that being cooped up in this school would make anyone turn into a confused robot when meeting new people. After a prolonged minute of awkward silence, Daisey shot Buttercup a friendly smile, showing off her pearly white teeth.

"You're one of the new girls," She spoke with interest. Buttercup realised that it might take a while to get used to that overly chirpy Aussie accent of hers. "I heard that three sisters were moving in today. It's nice to meet you."

Buttercup's thin eyebrow raised in curiosity. It was apparent that news traveled fast in this place. Composing herself, the dark-haired Utonium nodded.

"Yeah, my sisters are sharing the room opposite to this one. They're a lot more excited about this than I am." She mentioned, crossing her arms in distaste as she glanced around the messy room she would be subject to sleep in. She soon realised that perhaps this Daisey girl might not be the cleanest roommate.

Daisey's soft blue eyes rolled. "Let me guess, Mrs Sinclair gave you that speech about how 'Ashville Academy will change you for the better'. Gosh, she can be a right pain in the backside."

"Yes!" Buttercup's voice raised drastically. "She kept looking at me like she wanted to make a lady out of me. It was sickening. What's her deal anyway? Why is she such a.." Buttercup paused and began to click her fingers, trying to think of the perfect word to describe Holiday.

"A dingbat?"

Buttercup wore a perplexed expression. "Huh?"

"It means she's stupid."

"Oh. Then yes, she's a dingbat."

Daisey chuckled musically. Ever since she had been at this school, she had never had a roommate that she liked. Most of them either complained about her lack of tidiness while the rest just got on her nerves. Daisey always managed to get them to switch rooms by playing nasty pranks to drive them away. But she had the feeling that she had finally struck gold with Buttercup. A girl that didn't like Holiday and was also rather funny? Daisey liked this one.

"Don't worry, the other staff are a lot better than Mrs Sinclair," Daisey said. "I'll show you around the grounds later. There's tons of stuff to do in the third building. Do you play pool?"

Buttercup sported her legendary Utonium smirk. "I'm the master of pool."

"Ace," Daisey grinned. "I'm looking forward to facing off against the master." She bowed playfully, long brunette hair cascading around her.

The dark-haired Utonium smiled uncontrollably. She took another step into her new room and took a look around. Although the black carpeted floor was covered in items of clothing and what appeared to be chocolate wrappers, it was still rather quaint. The walls were a soft cream colour, most of the colour hidden by the mass of posters hanging on Daisey's side of the room. Both single beds had black sheets and white pillows, extremely bland yet comfortable looking. Stood by the side of the door was a vastly large wardrobe that looked broad enough to fit two people's clothing. Beside the oak wardrobe was a cream coloured stand, holding a small television. Both of the beds were positioned on opposite sides of the room, the only object between being a beige bedside cabinet. Over all, the room might not have lived up to Buttercup's high standards but it would do.

"Do you like the posters?" Daisey asked as she appeared beside Buttercup. "If you don't, I can take them down."

Buttercup turned her attention to the mass amount of band posters hanging beside and above Daisey's small bed. The first one that caught her eye was a Bastille poster which was stood tall in between a Paramore and an Augustana poster. Buttercup's eyes gleamed. Her favourite band of all time was Bastille. The rest of the posters were a selection of Indie bands, some solo artists such as Jessie J and Ellie Goulding, and even some rock legends. Buttercup was impressed, she distinctly remembered having at least several of the bands on her iPod Playlist.

"No, I like them."

"Good, because I wasn't going to take them down." The Aussie girl declared, turning to face Buttercup with a small, insignificant smirk tugging at her lips.

Buttercup rolled her eyes but still managed to smile at her roommate's comment. Just as she was about to ask Daisey what the teachers were like, Buttercup heard footsteps behind her. She spun herself around as did Daisey to face the two remaining Utoniums. Blossom was looking around the room with her nose scrunched in distaste as her eyes landed on the mess around the floor whist Bubbles was sheepishly waving at the strange brunette standing in front of her.

"Hello," Bubbles spoke politely. "I'm Buttercup's sister. Bubbles."

Daisey remained completely silent for a second. She was tempted to ask why they all had such odd names, but decided not to be rude. Instead, she sent a smile towards the freakishly short blonde. Daisey felt a surge of jealousy run through her as she sized the stranger up. Her beauty was unimaginable. Never had she seen someone with hair as golden as Bubbles', nor had she seen anyone with such sparkling, alluring blue eyes. Daisey was having a hard time stopping the envy from showing on her pale face.

Ever since the age of fourteen Bubbles had been aware that she was attractive. Her sisters always remained oblivious of the famous Utonium beauty but not the short blonde. She might not have been the sharpest knife in the drawer but she was certainly all knowing in different aspects. Bubbles had stopped wearing her hair in pigtails at the age of thirteen -realising that she had grown out of the adorable child look- and began to wear her rich golden hair down, usually curled to perfection. She never usually wore makeup unless it was necessary, she felt as though it ruined her natural style. Her skin was slightly sun-kissed compared to her sister's pale porcelain-esque skin. Whenever she smiled, dimples appeared at either side of her lips, adding to her sweet captivation.

Bubbles had spent all morning going through her mass of outfits trying to find something acceptable. After much deliberation she had decided upon a Christian Dior blouse and a Valentino pencil skirt. Her blouse was vintage, the colour of midnight blue bringing out the alluring bright blue of her eyes. It was a flattering blouse, complete with silver buttons and a neat collar. Her skirt was diamond white, reaching just bellow her knees, allowing her long legs to make their appearance. Completing her outfit was Salvatore Ferragamo slingback heels, the colour matching her blouse.

"I'm Daisey McCoy," The Aussie introduced, pushing aside her jealousy. "I love your shoes."

"Thank you. I like your belt."

"Oh, this? I bought this in Australia when I was seven. It's so cute, right?"

Buttercup rolled her eyes. She always hated how when anyone spoke to Bubbles the conversation turned into something to do with fashion. She understood that Bubbles had an eye for beauty, she could see the splendor in everything, whether it a simple dress or a mere painting that no one would pay attention to. But that was not Buttercup's department. Buttercup prefered to chat about music or sports. Yet Bubbles always managed to slyly enter fashion into any conversation. Once, Buttercup and Blossom were talking about chocolate ice-cream and somehow the conversation ended with a discussion of the new floral skirt that Bubbles had bought.

Much to Buttercup's appreciation, Blossom managed to stop the painfully boring conversation of belts by introducing herself.

"I'm Blossom. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Daisey's lips curved into a small smile. "Right back at you. Come on in, we can chat before I show you all around the school."

The two Utonium's stepped inside the small room, trudging past the mix of white and purple shirts that had clearly been flung around the room. Blossom sucked in a sharp breath, trying to hide her obvious distaste. Being the perfectionist that she was, Blossom didn't enjoy being in such a harsh enviroment. However she decided to try getting used to it for the time being. That was, until she could rush in during the middle of the night with a broom and a bottle of soap and water.

Buttercup took the chance to get acquainted with the bed she would soon have to be dragged out of every morning. She hopped onto the unforgiving mattress, upsetting the thin white pillows sitting at the head of the bed, and began bouncing around a little to check the comfort. She received odd looks as she continued to jump around on her backside, short black hair cascading all over the place.

"Uh, what is she doing?" Daisey whispered to Blossom.

"She is checking to see how comfortable the bed is," Blossom responded in a clearer voice, receiving a cautious look from Daisey in return. "She does this with all of her beds."

After a good twenty seconds of bouncing, Buttercup smiled. She lay down on the bed allowing her hair to fall around her face. It might not have reached the same level of snug relaxation as her previous bed in Townsville but it was still cozy. However she believed that the cushions seemed more like bricks than warm, fluffy pillows. She finally glanced up at her siblings and roommate only to find them all staring at her with mixed expressions.

"I like it!" Buttercup declared with a painfully wide grin strapped to her face.

Daisey pursed her lips and held back the urge to comment that Buttercup was beyond the weirdest person she had ever met. She strode past Blossom and jumped onto her own bed which unlike Buttercup she found extremely uncomfortable. She lay on the black sheets with her back propped up against the headboard, both hands placed behind her head and a content smile on her lips.

Just as Blossom decided to take a seat on Buttercup's bed in order to protect her feet from the messy floor, a new voice entered the mix from behind her.

"Daisey," A secondary Australian accent bellowed. "Did you steal my laptop again?"

The Utoniums and Daisey turned their attention towards the boy standing by the door. He stood there staring at the newest students in surprise. He was very tall -And older, Blossom noticed, most likely seventeen- and poised with this strong air of confidence surrounding him. His coffee coloured brown eyes bounced from one Utonium to another, studying them closely like he had never seen an unfamiliar face before. Amusement flickered in his orbs as he stared at them.

"I borrowed it actually." Daisey rolled her made-up eyes.

As he continued his piercing gaze at the Utonium sisters, the boy crossed his arms over his well-built chest. A smile lit up his face accenting his perfect cheekbones. Buttercup could practically feel Daisey's exasperation from the other side of the small bedroom. The stranger looked back over at Daisey with one of his eyebrows raised.

"I didn't realise that you had company. Finally made some mates that can put up with you, huh?" He teased, his voice as smooth as silk. And what a voice it was. Even Blossom found herself wishing that he would speak again.

Daisey sent the boy a cold look before turning her attention back to the girls. "This is Chase. He's an ass."

"I'm touched, Daze." Chase held his right hand to his chest and pouted. "That's the nicest thing you've ever said about me," He glanced back at the Utoniums. "I'm Chase Royale."

Chase grinned boyishly at them, looking nothing less than pleased to see new faces. His sandy blonde hair was disheveled, dark golden curls just about covering his unique, honest brown eyes. His hair fit well with his slightly smooth and sun-kissed skin giving him that perfect male complexion that most strive for. His look was so effortless, so easy, that it looked as though he didn't even try for his firm jaw line, straight nose and great cheekbones. While his face looked laid-back, his physique was another thing. Arms rippling with muscle and toned body - anyone could easily tell that he was the athletic type. And boy, it fit him well.

Casting a smile, Blossom stood forward and decided to introduce herself. "I'm Blossom and these are my sisters, Buttercup and Bubbles."

"I reckon that you are the new girls?"

"We're famous already?" Buttercup said to Chase as she sat up on her bed. "Awesome."

Chase's lips stretched into a grin. "Not famous, no. We just don't get a lot of excitement in this school. Three sisters moving into our hallowed halls is what you would call 'Grade A gossip'," He told Buttercup before glancing back over to Daisey, whom seemed less like the joyful girl she came across as now that Chase was in the room. "Why don't we give them a tour of the school? I'm sure that they would love to see the common room?"

"The common room?" Bubbles spoke up. Her eyes shined with curiosity.

"We Ashville Academy students call it the Sanctuary," Answered Daisey as she rose to her feet. "It's the only place in all the school that all years can hang out before and after classes. I reckon that you'll like it."

"That sounds great," Blossom said. "Let's go."

As the two Australian's headed towards the door, Blossom turned to face Buttercup. She raised her eyebrow in question when she noticed that her dark-haired sister was yet to get up. Sighing in defeat, Buttercup slid her Rick Owens jacket off of her shoulders before standing up. She didn't want a tour of the school, all she wanted was to find a way to escape it. Buttercup dragged her feet forward and followed her sisters out the door.

The five of them headed down the red stairs, Buttercup's hand clutching onto the cold, golden banister. Even the stairs screamed expensive. When their feet trampled down the steps, they didn't creek like the stairs in the Utonium's old home. The red carpet had no clear stains, even the banister was free of finger prints. Buttercup rolled her eyes while wondering if this school could get any less realistic. She was only about 20 percent sure that she was actually awake and that this wasn't just a terrible nightmare.

"The Sanctuary is usually flooded with students on Sundays, by the way," Chase spoke as he made his way to the bottom step. "Since you three are the first new students in months, there may be a lot of staring, but just ignore it."

"Yeah," Daisey piped up. "When Chase and I moved here a year ago everyone stared at us. But it'll stop after a while."

Bubbles glanced at Blossom and swallowed. Contrary to popular belief, Bubbles hated being the centre of attention. It made her feel uncomfortable. She stepped down the stairs nervously, wondering how her hair looked. Okay, so she may not enjoy being the centre of attention, but if that was the case, then she had to look good. Bubbles ran a hand through her hair, using her fingers as a makeshift comb. She looked down at her outfit, straightening out her blouse and dusting off her pencil skirt. Everything appeared to be okay. Bubbles just wished that she makeup hadn't smeared at some point during the car ride.

They walked into the common room, and just as Chase had predicted, all eyes were on them.

Buttercup narrowed her eyes as she looked around the room. There had to be at least thirty people all between the ages of fourteen to eighteen. Some instantly looked away when Buttercup shot them a glare, but others continued to look at them, as though they were the most interesting things in the whole room.

Daisey, a wide smile on her face, leaned into Buttercup and whispered, "Keep shooting them those evil looks, they'll be sure to stop looking at you."

Ignoring the staring, Bubbles and Blossom looked around. The walls were painted clean white, and there was these little specks of gold flickering across the walls almost like stars. A single photograph was hanging above one of the many red couches. The enlarged picture looked old but well taken care of, a photo of the school seen from the outside, however it looked slightly different. Written in a border on the golden frame was the numbers 2001. Students stood outside the school, posing for the photo. One of the students near the front was unmistakably Holiday Sinclair. The tanned skin, blonde hair, sharp green eyes and timeless beauty was hard to mistake for anyone else. She must have been at least seventeen years old, give or take a year.

Sitting near the back of the common room was a row of computers. They all looked modern enough and the computer chairs looked to be even more comfortable than the couches. Near the other corner was seven large pool tables, all places in rows like the computers, in the colour of beige. Two students -a girl and a boy, both with blonde hair- were already in the middle of a heated pool game. Their eyes were battling each other from across the table as they made their moves. Every now and then, they laughed, as though this was the most fun they had had in a while.

"Welcome to the Sanctuary - in other words, our common room," Daisey spoke loudly. She turned to the girls and smiled. "There's also a library in the back, you just have to go through that door over there-"

"A what?" Blossom's face lit up.

"-And you can use the computers to go online or send emails to family and friends back home. You only get a one hour pass per week though so use your time wisely-"

"What was that you said about a Library?" Blossom tried again.

"-Oh! Also, there is the swimming pool, it's in a room down the hall. That's right - an _indoor_ swimming pool. Coach Taylor uses it for Gym sometimes when he can't come up with anything proficient-"

"Daisey! The Library?"

The Aussie turned to Blossom, her eyes wide in surprise of her outburst. She hadn't even heard Blossom over the sound of her own voice. Smiling sheepishly, Daisey pointed to the wall near the door, her finger crossing over to another door on the other end of the wall, leading to the library. Before she had a chance to ramble on about the Sanctuary anymore, Daisey felt someone grab onto her arm. She turned to see Blossom, already trying to pull her over to the door.

"I need to see the library, right now." Blossom barely got out before she pulled Daisey away.

Buttercup, Bubbles and Chase watched them go in amusement. As soon as they were inside the library, Chase turned around to the girls, a grin on his lips. He gave a quick look around - barely anyone was staring anymore.

"So, ladies, who's up for a game of pool?" Chase asked. "I happen to be the best pool player in all of Ashville." He boasted.

"You were," Buttercup smirked. "Until an hour ago when I arrived."

"Oh, it's on."

Chase and Buttercup rushed over to the pool tables. Bubbles followed them, her eyes darting around the room as she did so. She had never seen so many different looking people in one room. There was posh looking boys and girls - all clad in Armani, Christian Loubiton and Prada. Then there was a group of goth-looking kids, none of which had anything that wasn't black on. Beside the computers were a flock of smart kids. There was even a corner filled with boys wearing football jerseys, jock style. Bubbles realised that this school may have it's advantages but it wasn't all that different from her old high school in Townsville.

While her sister and Chase began their game, Bubbles continued to look around. Her eyes fell onto a boy sitting on one of the couches by himself. He was the only person that wasn't sitting with a crowd. His hand was clutching a yellow pencil, and he was drawing on what looked like a sketch pad. Bubbles found herself more interested in him then any other group of people. Maybe it was because he was the only one that didn't see the point in giving into the clique rule, or maybe it was because while he could have been playing pool or surfing the web, he was drawing.

Before she realised what was happening, Bubbles found herself staring into his eyes. He had looked up, as if he felt someone looking his way, and he flipped his blonde hair out of her eyes so that he could see who it was. She felt lost in his eyes - pools of midnight blue, so dark and handsome that it was impossible to look away. The boy was definitely attractive. He had this lost, lone wolf quality about him. She noticed his eyes squint slightly as though he was trying to figure out who she was. Bubbles raised her eyebrow. That was impossible, he couldn't know who she was, she had just barely met him. His shoulders shrugged and he looked back down to his sketch pad. Bubbles frowned, she missed those eyes already.

"Hey, aren't you going to cheer me on?" Buttercup's voice broke out.

Bubbles spun herself around. She looked at the pool table, noticing that Buttercup was in fact winning so far. She only had five of her balls to get rid of, while Chase still had seven. If she kept this up Buttercup would win for sure.

"Oh, you're winning," Bubbles grinned and turned to Chase. "I thought you said that you were the best in all of Ashville?"

Chase's gaze narrowed. "I am the best, you'll see." His voice showed deep determination.

"Whatever you say, dude." Buttercup muttered.

Bubbles giggled. "So, I have to ask Chase, are you and Daisey boyfriend and girlfriend?"

"God no," Chase held back a hysterical laugh at the assumption. He leaned over the pool table and continued to play while speaking. "Daisey's mother and mine are best friends. We grew up together. But we're not exactly friends, more..frenemies."

"Frenemies?"

"You know, not exactly enemies nor friends," He scored another goal, smiling in achievement. "We've never really gotten on well but since we came here we decided that we'd try to put up with each other. Plus, Daisey doesn't have any other friends here, so it's only right that I sometimes hang out with her."

"Well she has friends now," Buttercup said as she took aim at one of her pool balls. "So you're off the hook."

Chase raised his eyebrow. Before he could say something, Blossom's voice sounded from the other side of the room. Buttercup, Bubbles and Chase looked over to find Blossom and Daisey walking towards them. They were laughing, and Blossom looked happier than when she had seen the inside of the school. Her whole face was lit up, obviously because she had enjoyed seeing the library.

"That was amazing, I've never seen so many David Levithan books in one place!" Blossom beamed as the name of her favourite author left her lips. "We have to go back there later."

"You certainly like books," Daisey commented with a smile. She turned to the others. "So, do you want to check out the outside? There's a lot to see."

Buttercup shrugged. "Sure."

Abandoning their game, Buttercup and Chase followed as Daisey let everyone out of the room. Bubbles was the last to reach the door, and before she left, she cast a glance towards the boy with the handsome eyes. He didn't meet her gaze this time, he was too preoccupied with whatever he was drawing. She smiled to herself before rushing out the door to catch up with everyone else.

* * *

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

As promised, Daisey and Chase took my sisters and I outside for a tour of the grounds. I wasn't sure what to expect. I mean, this school already looked like something out of a fancy novel. The floors were spotless and the paintings on each wall looked like they could easily be worth thousands. Currently we were being shown the famous football field that Rich Boy -My accurate nickname for Chase that I had drawn up once I noticed the ridiculously expensive silver Rolex on his wrist- had boasted so much about. The field was pretty huge, taking up most of the area behind all three buildings of the school. I had only been sitting on the plastic red seats of the bleachers and already I was feeling a pain in my backside. Not that sitting on cold plastic seats wasn't great of course.

From the distance I could see at least eight men and one very masculine looking female kicking a football around on the field. The female seemed way better than the males though. That made me smile. I started to drown out the sound of my sisters chatting so that I could take a good look at the field. The grass seemed freshly cut, really short as well. In each opposite side stood tight netted goals. There was even a score tracker that was just as tall as the bleachers I was sat on placed in between of both goals. It occurred to me that this field wasn't just for a fun game of football.

"Should I be concerned that there is an electronic score keeper?" I heard myself as absentmindedly as I stared at the players again. I could have sworn that one of the guys was checking out either myself of Blossom -who was sat right beside me- and not subtly either. Gross.

"It's not just for entertainment purposes," Chase said while turning his attention my way. "Sometimes rival private schools and other boarding schools come over to our school and play against us. Holiday said that it promotes healthy competitive skills although I wouldn't call out team's competitiveness healthy." He chuckled.

"Hmm," I mumbled to myself. I guess that this school is more realistic than I figured. Just when I was starting to think that this was all too idealistic to be true. "How do you know so much about the subject anyway, Rich Boy?" A small smirk lit up my face as Chase rolled his eyes at the well thought of nickname. Yes, I'm a genius. Hold your applause.

"I'm the Captain of the team. I also feel obligated to mention that since I have become Captain, we haven't lost a game since." He added before grinning to himself.

Daisey's expressive eyes rolled. "Honestly, Chase. I don't reckon the girls want to hear you boast about your virtues."

"But what is the point of having virtues if you can't boast about them?"

As the two friends, or frenemies I'm assuming, continued to bicker about Chase's accomplishments, I took the time to duck out before anyone could drag me into the argument. Call me crazy but I find unneccessary arguments a bit annoying and time-consuming. I strolled along the side of the painfully bright red bleachers, watching my step to make sure I didn't fall off. Dying on my first day? That would easily be a new record for my list of worst days ever. I wouldn't exactly be alive to be able to write it down but you see my point.

The second that my feet touched the ground, I noticed a large cloud of smoke ahead of me. Curious to figure out where the dark grey spirles were coming from I strolled over to the third building, which just happened to be the largest, fanciest looking building of them all. I walked slowly, my eyes narrowing, not sure what to expect. As soon as I got close enough to the Victorian-looking building I noticed a figure leaning against the wall. Judging from the broad shoulders and the large arms this was a male student. Or it could be the masculine looking girl I had seen on the football field.

I took a couple more steps until I found the source of the smoke. A lit cigarette hanging from the strangers lips.

Allowing myself to get a closer look I noticed that it was definitely a male student. He looked more or less the same as myself, give or take a couple of months, and he was taller than me. Like, really tall. I would have to stick on a pair of Bubbles' ridiculous high heels to look him dead in the eye. I observed him from head-to-toe, slightly surprised that he had not noticed me yet. I was standing at least ten steps away from him yet he seemed more interested in his cancer-stick.

He was attractive in an obvious sort of way. Like something out of an Abercrombie and Fitch catalogue. You know, where the male models stand in front of bland background with practically no clothes on, even though they are sporting a watch yet you can see the guy's abs more than the watch they are supposed to be selling. It's pretty disgusting.

I had to hand it to him though; his outfit was brilliant. An ink-black leather jacket that resembled my own. Underneath was what appeared to be a green muscle shirt -And I'm only judging that based on the fact that you could actually see his abs through the shirt- which was draped over a pair of seriously dark, ripped in all the right places pair of blue jeans.

"Hmm." I muttered to myself. He seemed like the type of boy that your mother would warn you to steer clear from.

The boy clutched his cigarette in his hand. Those hands. They looked as though they could crush someone without even trying. Are all teenage boys on steroids these days? Seriously, those arms can't be natural. He took a long drag of the cigarette, puffing out the dark clouds of smoke before letting his arm fall by his side. The smoke traveled towards me, allowing me to smell the horrid tobacco.

I wanted to vomit right on his olive green K-Swiss shoes. The smell of cigarette smoke always bothered me, to say the least. It was as though the little sticks were only created to bunk people off so that the world wouldn't be so overly populated. But the again, that's just my opinion. Others would just assume that some idiot came up with a great way to make money; Get people addicted to something perfectly legal so that they can't stop buying the damn things. Whoever came up with that bright idea was obviously someone with nothing better to do with their time and wanted a Ferrari..or whatever fancy car was around back then.

"Those things will kill you, you know?" I asked the stranger. Once I heard my own words, I realised that they held a bit more insolence than I intended. Not that I wanted to offend the guy in any way. Well maybe I did. It's not my fault that generally everything I say sounds rude.

As the boy turned to look at me, finally acknowledging my existence, his eyebrow raised in what I can only assume was amusement. Now that his eyes were on mine I took notice of the colour. Dark, very dark green. The shade put my green eyes to shame. Strangely enough, his hair colour seemed to match mine to a perfect ten. He had this intense vibe around him, but I wasn't intimidated. I don't get intimidated.

There was this deafening silence until the boy cleared his throat to speak.

"We're all going to die one day. What's the point of life if you don't live a little?" His voice, I noticed, was seriously deep and hoarse. That was most likely because of the cancer-stick that he was puffing away at. The tone of his voice almost sent shivers down my spine. It sounded oddly familiar and yet so new at the same time.

"You call this living?" His eyebrow raised again and he leaned forward slightly, almost daring me to continue. "You call smoking a stick that could kill you, living? And I thought _I_ was a little hypocritical." I snorted unattractively while rolling my eyes.

If anything, the sound only made him more amused. He smiled at me, although it seemed more like a smirk.

His laugher surrounded us and he actually had to hold his stomach to stop himself from doubling over. What was so damn amusing about what I said? He opened his eyes again and looked at me, his smile turning into a full-blown grin.

"Thanks but I'll skip the lecture, new girl."

I could feel a growl escaping my lips. A real, animatistic growl. If there was one thing I hated more than being laughed at, it was when someone called me anything but my name. New Girl? That was right at the top of the list of names that pissed me off to no extent. I clenched my fist, swung it back, and for a second I actually considered punching him. Then I thought about Blossom. She would fry me if I got into a fight on my first day. Pulling my fist back, I took a deep breath.

"You're lucky that I have a strict order not to get into any trouble today."

He stared at me and this time his smile was definitely not a smile. He actually had the nerve to smirk at me?

"So. Did you come to this school just to tell people off for smoking? Or do you have behaviour issues?" He asked casually, and just before I could respond, he blew out a huge puff of cigarette smoke. Right into my face.

I waved the cloud of smoke away with the back of my hand. And then I started coughing something fierce. I was so close to forgetting about Blossom's 'no violence' rule and inflicting some serious damage on this dude's Abercrombie and Fitch-looking face. I took a calming breath, trying to stop my hand from clenching again. As much as I didn't care for rules, I cared for Blossom. And if I did anything, she'd be so angry and disappointed. There was no way that I would let this guy come between us.

Ignoring his question, I turned around and started to walk back over to the football field. Just then I heard his voice again. His voice sounded less rough, but the general mischievous tone was still there.

"Can't I get your name?"

I froze in my step but I didn't turn around. "You have to earn that right."

With that, I left. And I could have sworn that I heard him laugh again, laughing like this was normal, like he was used to people talking to him like this. It only made him more insufferable. With that thought in mind I climbed back onto the bleachers and didn't look back, although I could tell he was still looking at me. One day, I would wipe that smile off of his face. Just for the fun of it, I would.

XoXoXoXoXoXo

**Regular POV**

Crossing her arms, Buttercup sat down beside Daisey. She ached to glance back over at the strange boy, just so she could shoot him a cold glare, but she was smarter than that. Cold glares led to arguments. And with Buttercup, arguments always led to fights. Instead she simply turned her attention to her sisters. She noticed how calm they seemed. Blossom was watching the football players with a small smile on her face while Bubbles was looking around the building, curiosity sparkling in her bright blue eyes.

They didn't seem nearly as uncomfortable about living here as Buttercup was.

"Who were you talking to over there?" Bubbles asked as she turned to face Buttercup.

"Some random guy," She shrugged and decided to change the conversation before she had to explain her frustrating encounter with the boy with the eyes so green. "So. We're going to have classes tomorrow," She directed her gaze towards her brunette roommate. "What are the teachers like?"

"They're evil," Daisey answered immediately. "First of all, there's Josh Lomax. He's our English teacher and he absolutely hates me," She muttered. "He's the vilest of them all. Then we have the Math teacher, Nathaniel Cavanaugh. He's wonderful, friendly and so gorgeous I can't even pay attention when he talks-"

"He's like twice your age." Chase cut her off while rolling his brown eyes.

"Wrong. He's only like thirty. Anyway, moving on," She hissed at Chase before turning back to Buttercup. "Next we have Miss Van Dey, she teaches Art class. You really don't want to catch her on a bad mood. Our History teacher is Mr Doyle. He's sort of sweet, I guess, but he can be strict sometimes. Mrs Devereaux is the French teacher. She's a B with an itch," Daisey paused as Buttercup couldn't help but laugh at her comment. She laughed herself before continuing. "Finally we have Mrs Khali. She's amazing, seriously. And she teaches Social Studies. You'll love her."

Blossom, suddenly interested in the conversation, opened her mouth to speak. "That's all the classes? I figured there would be more than that."

"Well there's Coach Taylor who teaches Gym and also coaches our football team." Chase added.

Daisey outstretched her hand towards her roommate. "Let me see the school schedule that Mrs Sinclair gave you. I'll check if we share any classes tomorrow."

Reaching into the back pocket of her jeans, Buttercup pulled out the small pamphlet that Holiday gave her earlier. She passed it to Daisey and watched as her blue eyes skimmed the front page. A small, happy sparkle shined in said eyes as she looked back up.

"Looks like we have English together, first period tomorrow." Daisey told Buttercup, who smiled, glad to have a familiar face in her first class.

Blossom pulled out her own school schedule. She began to read the first page, hoping that she wouldn't have to suffer through her classes alone. Although she didn't know Daisey or Chase that well, she knew who they were, and having them in the class would be better than if they weren't. Her wise pink eyes lit up as she read English sprawled across the pamphlet.

"I have English first period as well."

"I don't," Bubbles spoke up. Her auburn-haired sister turned to look at her and noticed that she too had her schedule in her hands. A tight frown appeared on her face. "I have History."

"Don't worry, you're in my History class. I have that tomorrow as well." Chase said, shooting Bubbles a friendly smile.

"Oh, well that makes me feel better." Bubbles answered as her frown turned into a grin.

Daisey abruptly stood up from her seat in between Buttercup and Chase, dusting off her blush pink skirt with her hands. Of course these seats were much cleaner than her bedroom so most found the action strange. The brunette hopped down onto the aisle so that she could walk, causing Blossom to look up from the school timetable that she had been studying.

"Where are you going?"

"She's got detention," Chase answered Blossom. "As per usual." He muttered, although he had a feeling that Daisey had heard considering the next thing he knew her hand was smacking the back of his blonde head. He raised a hand to his head, muttering a few obscene words under his breath, and shot Daisey an angered look.

"You're no better, Chase," She bit out. Turning her attention back to the Utonium's, Daisey smiled. "I'll see you girls later. Have fun touring the grounds."

With that, she walked down the aisle and left. Buttercup watched her go, without realising that her gaze landed on the third building. The boy that she had met was gone. Raising her eyebrow, Buttercup wondered where he had went off to. She thought back on his black hair, slightly spiked up at the front, damp from the Kansas rain. And his eyes that were so green, deep and familiar. His chiseled jaw. The way he stood up straight rather than slouching. The way his smile looked so crooked yet handsome at the same time. His voice, rough and sultry, unable to forget. Buttercup was sure she had never met anyone like him. And she knew one thing for sure; she hated that dude.

Chase's Australian voice brought Buttercup away from her thoughts.

"We'll have to cut this meeting short. I'd love to stay but I have an English project to work on with my roommate."

Curiously, Blossom asked, "What is your roommate like?"

"He's pretty uptight but I think that you would like him," Chase answered with a chuckle. He stood up and glanced down at the Utoniums. "Have a look around. We can hang out in the common room tonight."

After delivering a wave, Chase headed down the aisle of the bleachers.

"Well," Buttercup began. She turned to look at her sisters and shrugged her shoulders. "Ashville sucks. I told you."

"Are you being serious right now?" Blossom asked with a look of bewilderment on her face.

"Yeah," Bubbles piped up. "The school is beautiful. It's perfect in every way. And we've already made friends. How can you still not like Ashville?"

Buttercup bit back a rude comment. She knew that Blossom would have a fit if she started an argument. Instead she turned to face Bubbles, a hard look in her eyes and she answered.

"It's not Townsville."

* * *

An hour later, Bubbles pulled down the hood of her cropped Jacquard jacket. The Kansas rain had finally stopped and Bubbles caught the hint of a rainbow spreading across the sky, hovering above the school grounds. She wished that she had her camera on her so that she could snatch a picture of it. However she knew that her camera was back in her room. She had managed to get Blossom to unpack all of her things so that she didn't have to. It didn't take much convincing though considering that her sister prefered to it all herself. Bubbles smiled to herself at the thought of Blossom putting all of their clothes away, arranging them by colour or season. Once a perfectionist, always a perfectionist.

She strolled over to the third building and took in its beauty. The entire school reminded Bubbles of the castles in the fairy tales that John used to read to her when she was younger. She always envisioned herself as a Princess, standing in her castle and waiting for her Prince. But now that she was older Bubbles realised how insane all of that was. She could live in a castle -which she now sort of did, considering how huge Ashville Academy was- but that didn't make her a Princess. Nothing ever could. Bubbles was practical, just with a giant artistic imagination.

As she turned the corner of the third building, aching to see if there were anymore mysteries to this school, her breath caught in her throat. The inside of the school was just the beginning of Ashville Academy's beauty. Behind the third building was what appeared to be a real sanctuary - nothing like the common room. It was a utopia. Grass, taller and thicker than on the football field, surrounded the entire area. Rose bushes and sunflowers sat all around. It would probably take a good ten minutes to find a spot that no flower stood. Bubbles counted a total of seven stone cherubs -actual cherubs, holding silver flutes to their lips- scattered around the grass. And the best of all, a slick, silver fountain. Water poured out gracefully through two long tubes and into the large bowl at the bottom before the cycle started all over again. It was so peaceful, so noiseless.

Before Bubbles could rush up to her room and grab her camera, she noticed something. Someone, a boy sitting against the wall of the third building. It didn't take Bubbles long to realise that this mop of blonde hair was the same boy that she had seen in the common room earlier. His hand was wrapped around a pencil, and his blue eyes were stuck to the sketching pad in front of him. Bubbles wondered if he was drawing the water fountain, considering his gaze occasionally flickered up towards the quiet silver faucet.

She watched the strange boy from afar and took in every little detail about him. She studied him from the midnight pea coat around his shoulders to the bland sneakers on his feet. There was something about him - something that singled him out from the crowd. He seemed lonely, the type of lonely that was chosen, like he didn't mind. His dark blonde hair was disheveled as though he didn't put any effort into impressing anyone, and his deep blue eyes, framed by short lashes, held that same artistic flare that Bubbles' held whenever she saw a beautiful painting.

Bubbles decided that she may as well introduce herself. The more friends she made at this school, the better, considering she would be spending two years here. As soon as she took a step forward, the boy's gaze flickered up again, only this time he wasn't looking at the water fountain, he was looking right at her. Something besides artistic flare sparkled in his eyes. Recognition. Bubbles smiled at him, not sure what to say. But that didn't matter - because before she could speak, he did.

"Bubbles Utonium?" He asked. The boy's eyebrows furrowed as though he had seen a ghost.

Startled, Bubbles shot him a look of surprise.

"How do you know my name?"

"Really?" He said quietly, letting go of his pencil and letting it sit on the sketch pad on his legs. "You honestly don't recognise the person that fought you countless times? The person that looks _exactly_ like you?"

She stared at him in awe. Only one name seemed to come to mind, and she felt stupid for not realising it sooner. With a small voice, she called out the name. "Boomer?"

Boomer nodded, unable to take his eyes off of her. She looked so different in his eyes. The pigtails that he once made fun off had transformed into gorgeous blonde curls, cascading around her shoulders. Her height -something he also used to tease her for- had changed also. She was still so small for her age, but her legs were longer, and almost hypnotizing. Boomer could barely tell it was her. But he had recognised her the second that her eyes met with his up close. It was hard to forget such beautiful baby blue eyes.

Turning her head to the side, Bubbles' face lit up in realisation. "I knew it. That guy that Buttercup was talking to earlier..that was Butch Jojo," She turned her head back around to face him. "What are you all doing here?"

For a second Boomer looked hesitant to so much as exchange words with her. But then he placed his sketch pad on the ground above him and rose to his feet. Bubbles glanced down at the paper and realised that he wasn't just drawing the water fountain - he was drawing the entire area, the whole utopia. And it was amazing. He was amazing. She looked back up to meet his eyes and couldn't shake the look of shock in her eyes.

"We didn't really have a choice in the matter," Boomer spoke. His voice wasn't cold but it wasn't exactly super friendly either. He still seemed to be surprised that he was standing before his old counterpart, but mostly he was curious. "We had to come here."

Bubbles stood as still as the cherub statues surrounding the utopia. She didn't speak for a few moments, she just basked in the feeling of shock. Not once had she wondered if she would ever see him again, she didn't miss him when he and his brothers left Townsville, but now that she was standing with him, she realised that she couldn't miss him because he never said goodbye. There was no reason for him to say goodbye though, they were enemies. Bubbles wasn't sure what she should be feeling.

"You left," She mumbled before she even realised that she was speaking. Her eyes blinked rapidly as she continued. "We were ten years old. We woke up one day and realised that we hadn't heard from either you or your brothers in weeks. You just left and we didn't know why."

Boomer nodded again. "Yeah, we packed up our stuff and left. We left Townsville without telling a single person."

"But why?" Bubbles whispered.

"Because-" The blonde hesitated again. He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head, wondering why he was even bothering to talk to her. He looked over at her and saw so much question running through her eyes. Without giving it a secondary thought, Boomer answered her. "Because we wanted to be normal," He said in a small voice. "You of all people should understand that. We just..we didn't want to be criminals anymore. And we're not. We lost our powers a long time ago."

Furrowing her eyebrows, Bubbles said, "My sisters and I lost our powers too. When we were thirteen," A thick silence passed as the two blondes stared at each other. Bubbles took a deep breath before finally breaking the muteness. "I'm glad that you're not evil anymore."

Boomer instantly looked down at the grass bellow his feet. "Yeah? Why's that?"

"Whenever we fought, I could tell that you hated it. I could see that you hated all of it. You never looked happy."

With that said, Bubbles turned around and decided to leave before it could get anymore awkward, although it didn't seem like it could get any worse. She headed out of the utopia, leaving Boomer to watch her go. As soon as she was out of sight, Boomer let out a breath that he had been holding since she last spoke. He closed his eyes, unsure of why seeing Bubbles made him feel so relieved. He had a feeling that deep down he knew why though. Because unlike how Bubbles hadn't missed him - Boomer had definitely missed her.

* * *

Later that evening, Blossom was sat on Buttercup's new bed. She had finished setting up her own room and was dying to do something about Buttercup's. The clothes all around the room was bad enough, but the food packets and the CD's scattered everywhere was the deal breaker. Her obsessive compulsive disorder was kicking in, begging her to do something about the mess. Sitting across from Blossom on her own bed, Daisey lay her head back on her headboard and stared up at the ceiling. She looked happy, really happy, most likely from the fact that she actually had something close to friendship after a year in this school.

"So, if you don't mind me asking," Daisey began. She turned her head to face Blossom, curiosity clouding her blue eyes. "Why were you, Buttercup and Bubbles sent to Ashville? You don't seem like the trouble-making types."

Blossom pursed her lips in reluctance. She hadn't talked about her father's death in so long, it almost seemed impossible to mention it.

She heard Daisey speak again after a minute of silence passed. "Whatever it is, you can tell me. I don't judge."

"I guess it would do me some good to tell someone," Blossom said slowly. Her eyes met with Daisey's and she felt as though she could trust her. After all, it's not like the Aussie would go around and tell all of her friends, she didn't have any to tell. "My home was set on fire. It was because of a gas leak in the kitchen, it seemed to spread all around. And my father..he.."

"I understand. Go on." Daisey said softly, saving Blossom from saying it out loud.

The red-head took a breath. "We didn't have anyone to look after us. I mean, we tried to stay with our best friend, but it just wasn't available. And our other best friend couldn't take us in either. His father already had enough money troubles, he couldn't afford to take on all three of us."

"Don't you have a mother?"

Blossom blinked.

She thought about it for a second, debating what she should respond. She couldn't exactly say, 'No, we don't have a mother because we're actually just miracle lab experiments born with superpowers.' She wanted to come across as a normal teenage girl, not some sort of freak. However Blossom didn't want to lie to Daisey. She cleared her throat and decided against saying anything of the sort.

"She wasn't around," Blossom said carefully. "Anyway, we were told that we had to live here until we are eighteen."

"I'm sorry for your loss." Daisey looked over again, her eyes showing sincerity.

Blossom swallowed. "Thank you. He was a great man," She sighed and decided to switch the conversation. "So what about you? How did you end up here?"

Smiling bitterly, Daisey rolled her eyes, "I'm apparently a 'troubled child'. Thrown out of three high schools, refused to take action on my attitude problems. I guess considering I've never really had that many friends, I didn't find school that fun. I acted out."

"You have friends now."

Daisey nodded at Blossom, her lips curving into a thankful smile. "You know, I understand how you feel. My dad passed away as well."

Blossom looked at the Aussie with soft eyes. "He did? I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah," Daisey muttered. "That's sort of the reason that I'm here too. With my dad out of the way, I didn't have much in the way of parents. When he died my brother and I were left with Lilian."

"Who's Lilian?"

"My mother," Daisey spoke quietly, scowling in distaste. "I doubt you could even call her a mother. She sent me here the first chance she got."

_...Flashback._

_Daisey McCoy's usually mischievous smile was absent as she stood as still as a statue, staring at her mother. The tall, delicately slim, dark blonde woman wasn't even taking a side glance at her daughter's reaction. Instead, her fierce blue gaze latched onto the expensive Diamond Crypto Smartphone in her hand. There was a stiff, bored expression painted all over Lilian McCoy's youthful face. She barley took notice of the pregnant silence that followed what she had just told her daughter._

_"Boarding school?" Daisey's Australian accent bellowed throughout the McCoy's living room, bringing Lilan back to reality. "You want me to go to boarding school?" She asked bluntly. Her voice was a mix between shock and livid rage. The simple thought of leaving home forced the tall brunette to shake in her checkered sneakers._

_Daisey finally caught her mother's gaze._

_"Darling, it's only for a couple of years," The statuesque blonde replied nonchalantly. "You can always visit on the holidays. I just think that it would be best for us all if you went to Ashville Academy. You need to straighten yourself up," Lilan actually sported a frown, although it didn't look as sincere as Daisey had hoped. "This really is the best thing for you, sweetheart."_

_Lilian's overly posh voice trailed on as she began to stare absentmindedly at her phone again. Her daughter stood rigid, unable to pry the look of fear on her face. She hated being the 'new girl'. She hated trying to make friends and never being able to. She hated feeling trapped, and that's exactly how she felt at that moment. The thought of leaving Australia, of never seeing Chase - her only companion, and Tabitha - her only friend, terrified her._

_"You..you can't do this to me," The brunette's voice cracked. She shook her head in disbelief, mahogany hair thrashing wildly. "You can't send your own daughter away. Do I really mean that little to you?"_

_Lilian sighed. "Oh, please quit with the dramatics, Daisey. What am I supposed to do? You get kicked out of every school I put you into. You don't know how to behave properly. It really is best that you attend Ashville Academy. You are very lucky to be accepted, it's one of the best Boarding schools in the world. Please, just give it a try, Daisey."  
_

_"Do I really have a choice?" Daisey deadpanned. She watched as Lilian pursed her thin lips and said nothing. "Mom, please let me stay here. I don't want to be alone."_

_"I don't want to hear anymore of this. Go upstairs and start packing." Lilian said. Just as Daisey turned around to storm up to her room, Lilian placed her hand on Daisey's shoulder and stopped her. "Oh, and you won't be alone. I'll try to call as much as you want."_

_Daisey spun around, a look of pure hatred running in her eyes. "Don't bother."_

_With that, she ran upstairs to her room, fighting back tears of frustration._

_...End Flashback._

"Oh," Blossom whispered as Daisey finished her story. "I'm sorry that your mother didn't give you another chance."

Daisey tensed up. She sat back on her bed, allowing her head to rest on her pillow. She stared up at the ceiling in solitude as her mind drifted back to Australia. It had been a year and she still missed her home dearly. She missed her brother, her only friend, heck she even missed all three of her high schools. The only positive thing that came with her move was that Chase managed to get roped in to coming along with her. But she didn't want to get into that story yet, one story was enough for today.

She turned to look at Blossom again and pursed her lips.

"I guess on some level I should feel lucky," The brunette began. "There's people all around the world that have neither a father nor a mother. As much as I hated her for turning her back on me, she still realised that I needed to get out of Australia and have time to just forget about everything for even a day. And she sent me here, which was probably the best thing that she has ever done. I belong here."

Blossom nodded. "You're a lot smarter than I gave you credit for."

Smiling, Daisey said, "Well I've grown up a lot since moving here. I let go of all of that resentment. I think that you are your sisters can do the same, you know? This school..people don't realise just how much it does in fact change you. There's something about Ashville Academy that fixes everything."

"I hope you're right about that. There's a lot of things that need to be fixed in my family."

Daisey sucked in a sharp breath. "This is turning into a sob fest. We need to change the subject."

Blossom laughed and nodded. She looked around the room, thinking of something that she and Daisey could do to pass the time. Her first idea was the library, but she had a feeling that Daisey wasn't exactly the book-reading type. She noticed a laptop sitting on the floor, and bit back a comment about how a laptop does not belong on the floor, until she remembered that this wasn't Daisey's laptop. It was Chase's. She remembered when she first saw him earlier that day, he stormed in complaining that Daisey had stolen it from his room.

"Don't you have to take that back?"

Daisey's raised her eyebrow. Her gaze fell onto the floor where Blossom was pointing. She jumped up in surprise and went to grab it before someone stood on it.

"Oh yeah. Chase is going to need this to work on his English project." She said. Her hands gripped the black Toshiba Satellite laptop and she hugged it to her chest as though it was a treasured artifact - mainly because she knew that if she broke it, Chase would find a way to break something of hers, and she didn't want to wake up to find her X Box broken in half. Also, because she wanted to borrow it again later, and she couldn't do that it if someone stood on it.

"I'll take it back with you." Blossom offered as she got up from Buttercup's bed. Her feet landed on a chocolate wrapper, and her nose scrunched up. She held back a shriek and stepped away from the dirty food wrapper. Daisey held back a laugh at Blossom's expense as she strode towards the door.

The girls walked into the hall, passing various other dorm rooms. Most of them were empty as the students were either sitting in the common room, playing football outside, or hanging around near the utopia. Some people were still in their rooms so that they could work on their projects in solitude though. All of the second years - The sixteen to seventeen year olds - learned the same things in each class, therefore all had the same projects. The same went for the first years - the fourteen to fifteens - and the third years. Although the third years were all eighteen, so they didn't have to do the work anymore. The third years all had the option to leave the school, however some decided to stay for a while, until they realised what they wanted to do when they leave.

"He's in room fifty three," Daisey said to Blossom as she continued walking. She clutched Chase's laptop tighter to her, hoping that no one had stepped on it while it was on the floor. She stole his laptop a lot, among other things, and she was surprised that Chase didn't lock his bedroom door whenever he was at football practice. "He'll be working on his English project with his roommate so we can't stick around after I give this back. We can go to the common room or I can show you the swimming pool."

"Sounds good." Blossom nodded just as Daisey stopped walking.

Daisey strolled into a room, the number 53 hanging on the door, and waved for Blossom to follow her in. Unlike Daisey's room, this one was very tidy, almost too tidy. The walls were two different colours, the top half being white, and then underneath that a coat of red. It was painted so delicately that there wasn't even a need for a border to hide where the lines met in the middle. The carpet was black, and soft, really soft. It felt expensive. Even the white sheets on the two single beds were crease free. There was a two person wardrobe in the perfect centre between the two beds that sat on either side of the room. In the corner sat a red arm-chair, tall and round, fitting in well with the half red walls.

And surprisingly enough - a small television and a stereo sat on a table at the other end of the room, both of which had to be earned by good behaviour. Chase didn't seem like the 'good behaving' type, which only meant that this roommate of his was.

"I brought your laptop back, Chase." Daisey sing-songed as she walked over to Chase's bed.

Chase was sitting on his bed, staring a piece of paper with the information of his English assignment on it, before he turned to look at Daisey. Sitting in front of him was a boy. Obviously this was Chase's roommate. Blossom stayed beside the door. She didn't know Chase well enough to parade into his room and start talking to him. Her gaze fell onto Chase's roommate, of course she could only see the back of his head. He appeared to be just a tad shorter than Chase, and his hair was a deep copper colour, mostly hidden by the red snap-back hat on his head.

She turned her attention back to Chase just in time to see him take the laptop from Daisey's hands before turning back to his paper.

"No 'thank-you'?" The brunette pouted.

The roommate chuckled, and to Blossom it sounded so familiar. She just couldn't seem to place it.

Daisey turned to the red-haired boy and grinned. "Hey, Captain Genius. How's it going?"

"I told you to stop calling me that." He muttered.

Rolling her eyes, Daisey turned around to face the other red-head in the room. Blossom was staring at the back of the stranger's head with a raised eyebrow. She knew that laugh, and she knew that voice. Her eyes directed to Daisey, who had taken a step closer to her, a happy smile tugging at her lips. The brunette pointed between them and spoke.

"Captain Genius, meet my roommate's sister. She's one of the new girls."

The boy turned his head around, his eyes showing slight interest since Daisey mentioned one of the new girls, and then they widened. Her pink eyes were the first thing he saw. Pink eyes met red, and it was impossible not to recognise each other from that alone. Blossom's whole face contorted in shock. Red hair, evil-sounding laugh, tidy bedroom, red hat, and even now, red eyes. This was definitely her ex counterpart.

"Brick?" She whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.

For a moment Brick didn't say anything, he just looked at her. Brick couldn't believe his eyes. It had been so many years since he had seen that auburn hair and those pink eyes. If it were anyone else he wouldn't be this speechless but this girl was the reason he was alive, if it wasn't for her, he never would have been invented. Yet the last time he saw her, they were rolling around the roof of the Townsville Bank, trying to throw each other off the end. Blossom had managed to hold him down long enough for Buttercup to grab the stolen money from Butch, and then they never heard from them again.

After a thick silence, Daisey's voice broke out.

"Oh so you already know each other?" She looked between them and grinned. "Awesome. Come on, Blossom, we should go find your sisters before they get themselves lost," She turned back to Chase and Brick. "See you later, boys." She sing-songed before walking over to Blossom.

When Daisey took a step out the door and realised that Blossom had yet to move from her spot she turned around again. She pulled on Blossom's arm and sent her a questioning look.

"You alright?"

Blossom nodded, her eyes never leaving Brick for even a second. "Perfect."

Smiling, Daisey hooked her arm around Blossom's and led her over to the door. Once the two of them were out of sight, Chase watched Brick turn back around to face him, and his eyebrow raised. He had known Brick for four months and he had never seen him that speechless before, it was strange considering how out-spoken Brick usually was.

Chase broke the silence. "How do you know Blossom?"

"I've known her all my life."

XoXoXoXoXo

Blossom closed her eyes as soon as she heard Chase's door close. She ran a hand through her long auburn hair and cursed herself for allowing her counterpart to see her look so tongue-tied. Just knowing that he was so close, albeit behind a closed door, made her skin crawl. She wondered if people knew who he was. She wanted to lay low in this school, for no one to know about her past, but with Brick being here it just made it seem impossible, especially if he had told someone how he was created.

So many questions ran through her mind - Why was Brick in Kansas? How long has he been living here? And most importantly, was he still evil?

She was ready to make a move for her room, to tell one of her sisters. She was dying to tell someone. But before she could move her legs, Daisey popped up in front of her. The Aussie's blue eyes were shining in curiosity and excitement.

"That was a pretty intense staring match. I reckon there's a history between you and Captain Genius, huh?" She beamed, as though she was about to hear the best gossip she had heard all year. "How do you know him?"

Daisey noticed Blossom tense up at the mention of her nickname for Brick. She raised her eyebrow, looking at Blossom quizzically while awaiting her answer. Considering she didn't have many friends back in Australia, Daisey was unsure of what Blossom's behaviour was implying. Her first thought was that Brick was her ex boyfriend, but she didn't want to jump to conclusions.

"He's, um," Blossom swallowed. She didn't want to tell Daisey how extremely not-normal she was. She hated to lie to a new friend, but it was the only way to keep her past private. "I used to know him. We lived in the same neighbourhood. He and his brothers left town when they were ten years old. I just wasn't expecting to see him here is all." Blossom said, surprised at how easy it was for her to lie.

Laughing, Daisey replied, "Did he always wear those red contacts?"

Blossom blinked.

It was then that she realised that Brick and his brothers hadn't told anyone about how they were created either. And just like that, her secret was safe once again. Blossom wondered if either of her sisters knew about the Jojo's being here, or if the other two knew that her sisters were here. Her defensive mode kicked in. She didn't know if they were evil or not, and she wasn't taking any chances. She had to find Buttercup and Bubbles before someone else did.

"Yes..we both have a thing for contacts," Blossom blurted out. "Listen, I need to go talk to my sisters about something. I'll catch you later, okay?"

Before Daisey could respond, Blossom dashed towards her bedroom. She turned the corner and took a breath, not stopping her sprint. She couldn't go another second without telling one of her sisters who she had just seen. She just hoped that her sisters were in her's and Bubbles' room. The last she had seen them, Buttercup was heading down to the football field and Bubbles was exploring.

When she finally reached her room, she let out a sigh of relief. No Buttercup, but Bubbles was there. She was on her feet and pacing back and fourth in the middle of the room. Her light blue eyes looked like they were calculating something. Blossom stopped her run as soon as she got into the room, and she couldn't stop panting. It was such a short run but she still found herself panting, probably a result of the adrenaline mixed with the shock.

"There's something you need to know." Blossom breathed out.

Bubbles finally acknowledged her sister's presence. She stared at Blossom, whom was looking down at the floor, hands on her knees, letting out a deep breath. Bubbles looked taken aback by Blossom's overall demeanor. She nodded slowly before answering.

"Ditto."

"What do you need to tell me?" Blossom asked in confusion.

"I just ran into someone outside. I'll give you a hint; One of our ex enemies that goes by the name of-"

"Boomer or Butch Jojo."

Raising her eyebrow, Bubbles said, "Boomer. Hey, how do you know that I saw a Rowdyruff boy?"

"I know because I just saw Brick. He's Chase's roommate."

Bubbles pursed her lips, wondering if it could get any worse. The only two friends they had made at this school were associated with their enemies. Chase lived in the same dorm room as Brick, they were probably friends, and Daisey knew him. There was no way it could get any worse than this. Bubbles sat down on her freshly made bed, staring at the light blue walls of her room and thought of Boomer. He didn't seem bad but then again he never did. Bubbles wondered, what if they were only here to do something bad? What if they hadn't changed and Boomer was lying?

"Why do you think that they are here?" Blossom asked. She strolled over and sat next to Bubbles on the bed, turning to look at her.

"They want to be normal. That's what Boomer told me anyway."

Blossom frowned. "Do you think we can trust that?"

"No," The short blonde shook her head. "Of course we can't just trust them without reason. But it seems like they want exactly what we do," She turned to gaze and Blossom. "Boomer looked the picture of normality." Her voice wavered in envy at her last comment.

The room fell silent. Both Utonium's looked at each other as a single thought crossed both of their minds in unison.

"Wait..Buttercup doesn't know that they are here." Bubbles said slowly.

Blossom swallowed painfully. "But Butch knows that we're here."

Without another word, both girls shot up from the bed and dashed out the door to find Buttercup before she had a chance to realise who she had met earlier.

* * *

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

I had spent a good half hour at the football field. Even after watching three boys get their butt's handed to them by a girl, I still wasn't in a good mood. I don't think anything could make me feel any better about being in this school. Sure, the common room was pretty cool, and Daisey seemed like a good roommate, but given the chance I'd go back to Townsville in a flash. I grew up in Townsville, I had a whole life there, and now I'm just known as the 'new girl' of Ashville Academy.

Walking slowly, I wandered into the common room. I'm not sure what I was even looking for. I had a feeling that my sisters might be there, but they weren't, and neither was Daisey or Rich Boy. I was standing in a sea of unfamiliar faces. No one stared this time. I guess my morning of being the entertainment was over, thankfully. I looked around the room in disinterest. Most of the students were laughing with their friends, looking like they were actually having fun, and that confused the heck out of me. How on earth could they enjoy being locked up in a place where you had to _earn_ access to electronic devices? Come on, that's torture.

Staying here wasn't an option anymore, I was going to escape, someway, somehow. I didn't care how complicated it would be. There was no way that I was staying two whole years here. I would be out by the end of the year. That much I knew.

"Ah, it's the anti-smoker."

Oh lord. I knew that voice.

I spun around and there he was, the boy with the black hair and green eyes. The same delinquent that I had met earlier. He wasn't wearing his leather jacket anymore, and the first thing that I noticed was his muscles showing through his shirt. I realised a little too late that I had been staring at them for a while, and he snickered. I narrowed my gaze and looked up to meet his eyes.

I scowled, irritation evident on my face. "Oh, it's_ you_ again."

"I'm guessing that this school isn't what you expected, huh?" He asked me casually, that devil-may-care grin stuck to his face.

Rolling my eyes, I looked away from him. "I learned a while ago not to expect anything. But I guess you're right. This place is a bit better than I figured."

"Hmm," I heard him mumble. "My brothers seem to like it."

At the mention of family, I turned back to look at him. This guy had brothers? I hoped that they weren't anything like him. There was only room for one irritating person in my life right now, and I'm not counting Blossom in that. He looked at me and smiled slightly, like he wanted me to ask about his brothers. Like he wanted me to talk to him. I guess in hindsight I should have just walked away and left him to die of lung cancer, but on some level I was curious. And when I'm curious about something, I don't walk away.

"You have brothers?"

He smiled again. "Two. One of them is far too smart for his own good and the other is an artistic loner."

My eyes narrowed. It seemed like for a second he was describing my sisters. In fact, that sort of described my sisters perfectly. Blossom is smart, and she liked people to know it. And Bubbles, well she's artistic and she's never been the type to have a huge group of friends. I guess you could consider her somewhat loner-ish.

Something weird was definitely going on here.

"What's your name?" I asked carefully.

His lips curved into a smirk. "You have to earn that right, Sunshine."

_Sunshine. Sunshine. Suns-_

I could feel my face contort in realisation. There was only ever one person that has ever called me 'Sunshine'. I looked at the guy again, only this time I really looked at him. I didn't just skim over his familiar qualities. Black hair, spiked at the front. Green eyes, darker than mine. Tall, muscular, rough voice, bad attitude. It couldn't be..

_..Flashback:_

_"Give it!"_

_Buttercup growled as she tried to grab the bag. Towering over her, Butch Jojo clutched the bag filled with stolen money to his chest, unwilling to hand it over. From above them, they could hear their siblings fighting on the roof, Blossom trying to buy Buttercup enough time to get the money from Butch, and Bubbles distracting Boomer before he could realise that his brother's needed his help. It was all kicking off, and Buttercup wasn't planning on letting her sisters down. She flew over to Butch at full speed. Her eyes were deadly, while Butch's eyes were twitching._

_Without giving him time to avoid it, Buttercup stuck her hands out and tackled Butch to the floor. She grabbed his left arm and tried to wrestle the bag of money from her counterpart's hand. Butch managed to turn the situation around. He spun Buttercup over, trapping her under himself, smiling in victory. The next thing he knew, he was staring back into her glowing green eyes._

_Butch swerved out of the way and rolled onto the floor in an attempt to avoid Buttercup's laser beams. Buttercup jumped up to her feet, her eyes back to their usual light green, and through her foot up high. Although Butch had managed to duck and miss the kick completely, he didn't have time to avoid the punch that came for him stomach next. He staggered back slightly, and while he was distracted, Buttercup seized her opportunity and snatched the bag from his hand._

_She floated in the air, a smile on her face. "You may as well leave because you can't beat me."_

_Raising his eyebrow, Butch dusted the dirt from his clothes using his hands. "You're too confident for your own good," He muttered. "I'm a way better fighter than you are."_

_Buttercup growled animalistically. "Why are you still doing this anyway? Mojo is in jail, for good this time, you don't need to steal things anymore."_

_"I was literally born to do this," Butch answered while scowling. "What else would I be doing?"_

_"Hmm..I don't know? Living your life maybe?"_

_Butch let out a chuckle and shook his head slowly. He finished fixing his clothes when he heard Brick's voice from outside. He began walking towards the Townsville Bank door, his steps steady although he could barely feel his legs after being tackled by his counterpart. When he reached the door, he cast a final glance at Buttercup and smirked._

_"See you around, Sunshine."_

_..End Flashback:_

I blinked away the memory, although that was hard to do once I had started remembering. There had only ever been one person in all of my life who had called me that nickname. I remember hating it, but more importantly I remember the son of a monkey who had always called me it. I looked at the guy in front of me again, and then he spoke, and his voice had never sounded more familiar than at that moment.

"Still haven't figured it out?" He asked smugly.

I muttered the name uncontrollably. "Butch?"

He smirked at me, and it all came rushing back. I didn't have a doubt in my mind that this guy - this leather jacket wearing, name calling, chain-smoking, green eyed guy was Butch freaking Jojo.

"Welcome to Ashville, Sunshine."

* * *

**~ There you have it, the début of my brand new story! I know that I said I would wait until Townsville High was finished but you see, I finished this last night and I have to go away for two days, so I thought I may as well get it up now. Don't worry Townsville High readers, I'll be updating the final two chapters as quick as I can! For the new readers out there, thank you for reading this story and I hope you all liked it (:**

**Next Chapter - As classes start, Blossom attempts to understand Brick and his brother's real intentions while Buttercup deals with Butch's persistent presence in her life. Meanwhile, Bubbles learns how the Jojo brothers came to be in Ashville Academy.**

**Tell me what you think! Don't forget to drop a review and make my day angels!**

**- Allie**


	2. Your Kingdom

**Ashville Academy**

**~ Hey angels! Thank you to everyone who read, reviewed, favourited and followed the first chapter, I really appreciate it! I hope you like the second chapter just as much as the first. Also, please read the AN down there, thank you! ~**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters in this story, minus the own characters. I also don't own rights to the song lyrics.**

**VERY, VERY IMPORTANT AN! - This story has a feature that basis one chapter on one character. For instance, the chapter will start off with that particular character's thoughts and end the same, but the other characters will still very much feature in the chapter. This chapter is Buttercup's. If anyone doesn't understand this feature, mail me and I shall explain it in great detail. Thank you.**

* * *

Previously;_ I blinked away the memory, although that was hard to do once I had started remembering. There had only ever been one person in all of my life who had called me that nickname. I remember hating it, but more importantly I remember the son of a monkey who had always called me it. I looked at the guy in front of me again, and then he spoke, and his voice had never sounded more familiar then at that moment._

_"Still haven't figured it out?" He asked smugly._

_I muttered the name uncontrollably. "Butch?"_

_He smirked at me, and it all came rushing back. I didn't have a doubt in my mind that this guy - this leather jacket wearing, name calling, chain smoking, green-eyed guy was Butch freaking Jojo._

_"Welcome to Ashville, Sunshine."_

XoXoXoXoXoXo

_Holy water cannot help you now._  
_A thousand armies couldn't keep me out._  
_I don't want your money,_  
_I don't want your crown._  
_See I've come to burn,_  
_Your kingdom down._

_- Florence and the Machine, Seven Devils_

Monday, February 4th, 2013.

(Buttercup)

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

Laying in my new bed, I stared up at the ceiling. It was pure white and there wasn't a single crack to be seen. I let out a sigh of exasperation. Why was it so hard to find something wrong with this school? Well, there was a lot wrong about it, I mean the look of it. The whole school, I hated to admit, was decorated nicely and there were no blemishes or flaws. About an hour earlier I realised that my attempts to sleep were fruitless. I couldn't sleep no matter how hard I tried. I had endured a night of listening to my roommate snoring, and occasionally I could hear people talking in hushed whispers outside of my room, either heading to the bathroom or trying to sneak down to the common room because they couldn't sleep either.

I tried to convince myself that Daisey's snoring was the reason that I couldn't get to sleep. But it wasn't hard to realise that the real reason was Butch freaking Jojo. I guess I hadn't registered everything that had happened the night before. You can't blame me though, after all, seeing my ex enemy who disappeared six years ago was hard to process. I had way too many questions and zero answers.

My head turned to the side and I looked at the alarm clock sitting on the cabinet beside my bed. It was finally seven am, which meant that my first ever class at Ashville Academy would start in an hour. Oh, joy. The sunlight was shining through the window and I knew that there was no way I could catch the last half hour of sleep I had left. Turning back to the ceiling, I pursed my lips, and my mind crossed back to my encounter with Butch. I had felt like such an idiot for not realising that it was him when I spoke to him by the football field. It was so clear and yet I didn't even realise it.

And now, all I was left was with anger, and a ton of questions that never got answered..

_..Flashback:_

_Buttercup's body went into defense mode, suddenly wishing more than ever that she had her powers so she could throw fireballs at Butch until he ran right out of Kansas, and her life. She stood perfectly still for half a minute as did Butch. Her mind raced, asking herself why he wasn't attacking or trying to steal something. Her eyes peered deep into Butch's, almost daring him to try something while she was standing there. Powerless or not, Buttercup could still beat him, she knew it._

_When nothing happened, Buttercup looked at him again. He looked different from the last time she had seen him - obviously, considering he was ten years old the last time they had seen each other. Although his hair was still spiked, his eyes were still so green, and he still had that twitching thing going on, there were some distinct differences. His height, for example, once he had been just a speck shorter than his counterpart, and now he towered over her. Buttercup would have to stick on a pair of heels to beat his height. His face had now lost that childlike innocence and was replaced by a roughed structure. Even his once evil smile had transformed into a handsome, crooked half-grin._

_While Buttercup was sure that she looked different than when she was ten years old, Butch took the bucket. He looked completely different. Then again, maybe it wasn't that different, Buttercup just needed a reason to understand why she hadn't recognised him by the football field._

_"Butch," She muttered, still unable to believe it. "Did you know it was me when we talked this morning!?" She demanded. A couple of heads turned to watch what was going on, but Buttercup officially didn't care about the staring anymore. She just wanted answers._

_"I recognised you right away. Come on - short black hair, bright green eyes, got a terrible attitude, who else would it be but Buttercup Utonium?"_

_Buttercup growled. "You better tell me why you're here right now, or I'm going to have to get it out of you myself."_

_Before she could do something that would surely get her kicked out of Ashville Academy, Buttercup felt someone grab her arm. She spun around defensively and caught sight of Blossom tugging at her forearm, trying to pull her away from Butch. She noticed Bubbles standing behind Blossom as well. Her blue eyes were shooting Buttercup a look of warning, not nearly affective as Blossom's, but then again, no one could ever say no to that face._

_Dropping her defensive stance, Buttercup allowed her sisters to take her over to the other end of the common room. The second that they stopped moving and Butch was almost out of view, the dark-haired Utonium clenched her fists in anger. She had been trying so hard not to get into trouble but with him here it was going to be impossible. She turned to look at him again, making sure that she could still see him. She didn't trust Butch not to do something evil. When she noticed him staring back at her, Buttercup spun her head back around instantly and prepared to start yelling._

_"Why didn't anyone tell me!?" She bit out loudly._

_"We only just found out," Bubbles spoke up. "It turns out that Chase's roommate - you know, the pretty uptight one that he thinks we would like, yeah, that's Brick Jojo. And that blonde guy that I saw here earlier, Boomer Jojo. According to Boomer they've been here for a while."_

_"Hold up, you talked to Boomer? Are you insane?"_

_Bubbles frowned. "No, I'm not insane. But when you see your ex counterpart that disappeared from the face of the earth years before, you_ sort_ of want to ask some questions."_

_"Don't get smart with me, Bubbles!"_

_"Let's not argue about this," Blossom spoke up. She turned to look at Buttercup and sighed. "Don't let those Jojo brothers come between us. We just need to come up with some sort of a plan, some way to find out if they are still up to no good."_

_Buttercup narrowed her gaze at the red-head. "If?" She repeated sharply. "You actually think that there's a chance that they've changed? Bloss, these are boys that were literally created to take us down."_

_"Yes, but that was when we were the Powerpuff girls and they were the Rowdyruff boys. What reason do they have to destroy us now? We're just normal teenagers living normal teenage lives now."_

_"Wrong," Buttercup hissed. "Nothing has changed. Even if we aren't superhero's anymore, they were still created to be evil. Who knows what they were up to when they left Townsville. They were probably sent here for getting into trouble in wherever they ended up."_

_Bubbles looked down at the ground and thought about what Buttercup had said. She could hear her sisters arguing but she tuned it out. Boomer hadn't seemed evil yet he was in a school for troubled teenagers. There was a good chance that he was here because like Bubbles, he had no place to live or a legal guardian, yet the chance seemed tiny compared to the chance that he did something troublesome. Bubbles bit her nails - a nervous habit that she had picked up years earlier - and tried to come up with a plan to decipher if the Jojo brothers were still evil._

_As her mind stuck a blank, Bubbles tuned back into the conversation._

_"Look, I don't believe them, not for even a second," Blossom said softly. "But they haven't exactly done anything to convey that they are still evil."_

_A scoff escaped Buttercup's lips. "This is _insanity_, Blossom! You are both so naïve, I can't even..I can't listen to anymore of this. I'm going to my room."_

_With that said, the dark-haired Utonium spun on her boots and marched away from her sisters. She headed for the door and passed Butch on her way. She didn't even look at him - she couldn't. Her eyes flared with anger at Blossom's naïvety as she pushed past several girls all clad in expensive clothes and rushed out the door, fully aware that most of the people in the common room were watching her in confusion. She didn't mind. She couldn't act normal anymore, not when the Jojo's were so close, reminding her of everything that she used to be._

_Running out of the third building, Buttercup bit back a groan. This was so not what she had signed on for when she agreed to move to Ashville Academy._

_"I need to get out of this school." She muttered to herself._

_...End Flashback._

When I got back to my room that night, I went straight into my bed and yelled into my pillow to get out my frustration. It didn't help much. I wanted to scream louder, to punch something, but more importantly I wanted to talk to my dad. He would know what to do. He always knew exactly what to say. Then I remembered why I was here; my dad died. I thought about it more - how I have no where else to go, no way out of this Victorian nightmare, no escape from the reality that I had to live in the same school as Butch Jojo. I had never felt so trapped in my entire life. It really, really sucked.

My sisters are naïve. They take one look at our 'born again' counterparts and believe every dirty lie that comes out of them. Why would they be so quick to side with the boys that were created to destroy us? Sure, Blossom had some good points. We're not superheros anymore. But that doesn't mean that the Jojo brothers aren't evil criminals anymore. That morning I swore to myself that I would find a way to prove to my sisters that they aren't to be trusted.

From the other side of the room I could hear Daisey stirring in her sleep. She would be awake any minute and then I would have deal with her chirpy accent this early in the morning. Brilliant. Before she could get up and start talking, I rushed out of my bed and over to the dresser. I didn't see the point in making my bed either, something told me that by the time I got back up after classes, it would be made already. I mean, an un-made bed seems so un-Ashville, what with everything being perfect and all.

I fished out a short-sleeved green shirt and a pair of black jeans to change in to, then I began walking towards the door. My steps were light as I tried desperately not to wake Daisey up. I closed the room door behind me carefully before heading down the hall. If I remembered correctly, Daisey had mentioned that the female bathrooms were at the end of the hall. They had a set of male and female bathrooms on each floor, specifically for each year. I wasn't sure what to expect. I just hoped that it wasn't small or there was only like one shower or something. There's no way I would wait more than five minutes to shower.

By the time I reached the end of the hall, I noticed a door with a plaque tacked onto it, the words 'Ladie's Room' written on it. Ladies? Just when I thought Ashville couldn't get anymore pretentious. I opened the single door which was painted a faint blue, it wasn't heavy or anything, but I hadn't slept so I had to slide inside without opening the door fully. When I got inside I realised that the bathroom wasn't the small cubicle-esque room that I had expected. It looked like the type of bathroom that the Queen would shower in.

For starters, the stalls. There were at least seventeen toilet stalls across the fourth wall, filling up the whole width of the wall. The stalls were just as small as I had thought but they were taller and whiter and a whole lot cleaner. I took a step forward and peaked my head inside of the first one. Yup, not what I was expecting. I ducked back out and turned to look at the showers. Not one shower, I counted, twelve shower spaces sprawled along the third wall. They had separators which was a good thing. I did enjoy my privacy after all. Finally against the second wall there was a ton of sinks, a wide full-wall mirror hanging above them, and a mix of towels, soaps and cleansing products sat on the shelves under the mirror.

Never had I seen such a huge bathroom before. And this was just the girl's bathroom for the second years, there was six of these rooms in just this building. I'm guessing that whoever owns this school has a lot of cash to just throw around if they put this much pizzazz into the freaking bathrooms.

I was alone in the bathroom but I could hear doors closing and voices in the hall, which meant that people were just getting up now to get ready for classes. I quickly undressed and darted into one of the shower stalls before I could get squished by the stampede of teenage girls wanting to reach the showers first. Not sleeping had it's advantages, I suppose. When I got inside of the shower, I also noticed a plaque on one of the walls stating that I only had fifteen minutes to shower. Great, I couldn't even take a long shower, that's just wonderful.

When I hit the switch to turn the shower on, the door practically flew from its hinges and I could hear teenage girls flooding in, moaning about how they needed the mirror first to do their hair and makeup.

"And so it begins." I mumbled.

* * *

**Regular POV**

Twenty minutes before their first class would begin, Blossom and Bubbles were sitting on one of the many red couches in the common room. They sat in silence for the first minute and just looked around. The Sanctuary was crowded at this time of the morning, they noticed, although luckily Blossom had counted a total of zero Jojo brothers. She assumed that they prefered to wait for class in their rooms instead and she was thankful for that. It was far too early for confrontation. Still, there were a lot of other students waiting around. Some of them played pool with their friends, some were doing their homework in a rush to get it finished in time, and the rest were just talking amongst themselves.

Blossom had taken the opportunity to grab a book out of the library to read while she waited. The book was large, almost too heavy to carry, and was covered in a thick layer of grey dust, proving that it hadn't been picked up in a while. Blossom was enjoying it though. There were a lot of big words that she understood - and boy, did she love to feel smart. Her eyes occasionally flickered up from the dusty book to glance around the room, more so to look at the door, hoping to see Buttercup stroll though it.

Sitting beside her, Bubbles chewed on her thumb nail and stared out of the locked window ahead of her. All that she could seem to think about was Townsville. Around this time two months ago she was walking to her old school, with a happy, care-free smile on her face because she was always excited to see her friends. She had loved that school, it didn't seem like Ashville Academy could possibly compare. But she would try to at least make the most out of her experience.

She checked the clock for the fifth time in six minutes, and a groan escaped from her lips.

"I don't like all of this waiting." The blonde said impatiently. She was sat on the far end of the couch, her legs crossed as though she was making herself at home, and a pout was playing her lips.

Blossom, whom had finally glanced up from her book, took notice of Bubbles' presence again. Her waist-long auburn hair was held up in a high ponytail, loose strands cascading her vision so much that she had to shake her head just to get a good look at Bubbles. Having gotten up early to get ready, Blossom did look amazing. She had applied a small amount of makeup, nothing more than eyeshadow and blush, yet she still had a natural look about her. As for her clothes, she had taken Bubbles' advice about 'less being more' and decided to go with a bland shirt and a white skirt. The shirt's sleeves were short and the colour was a light, champagne-esque pink, bringing out the darker pink in her eyes. Under was a long, white pencil skirt, that made her legs look like heaven, and instantly gave her a look of class and timeless beauty.

She brushed a strand of auburn hair behind her ear and raised one of her thin eyebrows at Bubbles.

"We've only been down here for ten minutes, Bubbles," Blossom smiled at her sister's impatience. "Don't worry. The bell will ring soon and we can leave," She looked down at her book and contemplated reading it again, but she found that her mind was not in the right place. She turned back to Bubbles and spoke again. "Are you nervous?"

"A little," Bubbles nodded slowly. She turned to look at her sister. "Are you?"

Blossom finally closed her book and gave Bubbles her full attention. She began to shake her head, stopping half way through, and sighed before nodding instead. "Yes. I mean, as far as first days go, this has to be one of the most complicated. When classes finish we're not going to go home and start the cycle over again. It's not going to be the same as our old high school. We're still going to be here, all day every day, with the same people and the same enviroment. And that's sort of scary."

Blinking, Bubbles raised her eyebrow. "Did you drink like seven cups of coffee? Where is all of this morning insight coming from?"

"I thought a lot about this the other night, okay? It was all I could do to not think of our argument with Buttercup."

A silence passed. Bubbles frowned instantly, having just remembered how Buttercup had stormed off the night before. She remembered walking up to her room and trying to talk to her sister but Daisey had told her that Buttercup wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. She had spent most of the night wondering how she could get Buttercup calm down about the whole situation, but getting Buttercup to calm down was almost impossible.

"We'll be okay," Bubbles said. She tore her eyes away from the window and her thoughts away from Buttercup. "We've gotten through things a whole lot worse than this school. We can do this," She glanced at Blossom and held a brave face. "Even if we have to see those boys again."

Blossom nodded slowly and looked down at her feet. She felt herself look over at the door again, only this time she realised that she hadn't been looking out for Buttercup, she had been looking out for that counterpart of hers. She closed her eyes tightly and gripped the book in her hands. She could feel herself growing more nervous of the thought of possibly being in the same classroom of the boys that knew her so well. So much for pretending to be normal, she said to herself.

"Blossom?"

The auburn haired Utonium looked over to her sister. "Huh?"

"Do you agree with Buttercup? Do you think that I'm naïve for believing what Boomer said?"

"No," Blossom said instantly. Her face softened as she put a comforting hand on Bubbles' shoulder. "Trusting an old enemy doesn't make you naïve, it makes you compassionate, and there's nothing wrong with that. Buttercup just couldn't understand why we weren't as cautious as she is. But she does have a point. We can't be so quick to trust them."

"What are we going to do, then?"

"We're going to go to class, and we're going to get through today. And then tomorrow, we'll work on a way to figure out what they are up to. Just don't talk to any of them, not until we know what is going on-" Blossom stopped her speech when she noticed Bubbles' lips curving into a wide smile. "What?" She asked in confusion.

"It's nothing," Bubbles dismissed, her grin only getting bigger. "It's just..the way that you're talking, it's like we're superheros again, trying to figure out what the bad guys are up to. This is the first time I've felt like a Powerpuff girl in three years."

Blossom's face dropped. She stared at Bubbles in bewilderment. "I guess you're right. But this is the end. We decided that we would pretend to be normal teenage girls, remember? So once we find out what those boys are up to, we're finished. Understand?"

"Yes, _mother_." Bubbles teased.

Rolling her eyes, the red-head sighed. "I mean it. The Rowdyruff boys being here has already came close to ruining our 'non-ex superhero' status, we can't let anything else get in the way of that. Now, let's sit here quietly and wait for our first class."

Bubbles pouted but did as she was told. She crossed her arms and sunk deeper into the red couch she was sat on. Beside her, Blossom opened her dusty old book again and continued reading, her wise pink eyes fluttering past the page calmly. Bubbles once more looked at the clock. She wondered just what her first class would be like. Would the teacher be wonderful? Would she end up being singled out? Would she make any friends, or enemies? Bubbles pushed those thoughts from her head. If anything they were only making her even more nervous.

She began to twirl the ends of her curly blonde hair between her fingers. She had spent a good twelve minutes using her curlers to make her hair look perfect, which it did, much to her appreciation. She had kept the tips slighty straight and pulled the mass of hair back a little using a white hairclip. It was classier than she was used to, but Bubbles assumed that she may as well look as high-class as the rest of the school did. She had swapped out her blouse and skirt for a long blue sundress. The sleeves were thick and the neck-line was high, and it reached just bellow her kneecaps, sucking in at the middle and shimmering outwards. The colour was a dark blue which went well with her light blue eyes. And to finish off her outfit, she wore blue flat shoes, rather than heels. She was short even with the heels anyway.

Bubbles absentmindedly glanced up at the clock again, and she grinned. It was finally time. As the clock ticked closer to the 8, the first bell rang out, causing everyone in the common room to disrupt their fun and prepare for classes. Bubbles watched as some students pulled away from the computers and shoved their homework in their pockets, heading for the door in a hurry, as though they may be crucified if they were late.

"Looks like we should go," Blossom spoke up as she rose to her feet, clutching her book to her chest. She looked down at Bubbles and shot her a comforting smile. "Will you be able to find Chase okay?"

Nodding, Bubbles stood up. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

And while her voice held confidence, her eyes told a whole other story.

* * *

**Bubbles Utonium's POV**

Once I had left Blossom to go find Buttercup and Daisey, I began heading towards the first building. My heart was pounding - with what, I don't know. I actually felt quite excited. I had lived in Townsville my entire life, I hadn't ever experienced anything new before. But living in Kansas, and starting my first class at boarding school, that was so entirely new that I couldn't process my exhilaration. My steps were slow as I turned the corner and looked ahead at the first building. I could see Chase standing there just outside the door. He was looking down at the watch on his wrist and tapping his foot impatiently. I wasn't even late, in fact I was a minute early, but apparently Chase didn't notice that factor.

The grounds were clear, and all that could be heard was my footsteps and the birds chirping above me. Chase had finally looked at me when he heard me coming towards him, and he smiled. It was such a friendly smile that I found myself forced to smile back. I didn't have that many friends back in Townsville, I wasn't popular or picky when it came to friends, so seeing that sheer amiable smile made me feel brilliant. And it was something else that felt new to me.

Chase and I had planned to meet here the night before. He was going to take me to History, which luckily, we had together. Having someone that I knew there would make me feel ten times better, but I was afraid that I might see someone else there that I knew. I've always been known to have terrible luck. With said luck, I'm betting that at least one Jojo brother would be sitting there when I got inside the class, and then things would take a very bad turn. But I had to keep my poker face on, no matter who sat behind the door, because I couldn't let anyone know that I'm not normal.

"Just on time," Chase told me as I made my way to his side. He fixed the collar of his jacket. It was Barbour Duke, no doubt, I had seen it in last week's Vogue. I was starting to think that Chase Royale really was royalty. "Let's get going. You don't want to catch Mr Doyle in a bad mood."

I turned my attention away from his jacket and swatted at my lips. Okay, so I might have drooled a little. But it's not every day that I come face-to-face with Barbour Duke. I've rocked Valentino and Christian Dior but this boy was the pure image of Versace and Louis Vuitton. If I ever found myself in Chase's closet I would probably die from happiness. Snapping myself back to reality, I raised my eyebrow at Chase.

"Is Mr Doyle usually in a bad mood? Because, you know, I don't do well with angry teachers."

Chase smiled again. "He's not the angry type, unless someone is late, so let's get a move on."

With that, Chase turned around and walked through the door to the first building. I stood perfectly still behind him. I took a deep, huge breath, but it didn't do well with calming me down. My excitement and nervousness were mixing together until I felt dizzy, unsure of what I should be feeling. I shook my head and flipped my hair confidently. This was nothing, I had dealt with far worse in my life. I wasn't about to let school make me feel like I might throw up.

Rushing forward, I chased after Chase - no pun intended.

"Wait up!" I called out.

Chase led me around the corner. The teal coloured walls were anything but dull and the entire hall was a mix of blue. Even the carpet was blue, a nice shade of blue, almost calming and dreamy. Some students pushed past us carelessly to get into their classes before the final bell rung. We only had five minutes to get to each class, and if we made in after the final bell, we were officially late. Daisey had told me that the other night. I guess being late is considered pretty bad considering we sleep in a building that is right beside our classes.

I walked down the hall and stared at the paintings on the wall. They were so beautiful that I just wanted to reach out and touch them, but that was most likely frowned upon. The first one I saw was of the New York skyline. The sunset was painted amazingly, swishes of red and black, and the buildings were so intricate that it looked like it had taken the painter at least a week to do each one. I could tell that I was drooling again, but I didn't even care. I wanted to meet the painter so badly just to congratulate them on making something so..drool-worthy.

"Bubbles!"

I snapped out of my daze and spun around. Only then did I realise that I had stopped moving and had been staring at that painting for longer than I had realised. Chase was in front of me, giving me that face that he made when I asked if Daisey was his girlfriend - like I was insane.

"Oh, sorry. I just-"

"Yeah, yeah," Chase waved his arm. "We don't have time to dilly dally. We need to get to class before Mr Doyle blows a fuse."

We began walking at full speed towards the class. It was located at the end of the hall therefore it took us a while to get there. Strangely enough, the second that our feet were inside of the classroom, the final bell rung out, breaking my eardrums. Maybe my luck was finally taking a good turn and- oh, nevermind. When I scanned the room, my eyes landed on none other than Boomer Jojo. It wasn't only him, either, sat beside him was his twitchy brother, Buttercup's counterpart.

Boomer's eyes stared hard into mine and I felt dizzy again. Then he looked at Chase, and he frowned. Hey, I finally found someone that doesn't bow before Chase Royale's feet.

"Mr Royale, there you are," Someone spoke. And when I turned my attention towards the front of the class, I saw the teacher. "And you must be one of the new students." Oh, he was looking at me now. _Perfect._

"Um, hi." I said lamely.

I was shocked to say the least. When I laid eyes upon my History teacher, I was expecting nothing more than black thick-rimmed glasses and grey hair. But Mr Doyle was nothing like that. He had a rugged quality about him. He had a tall stature, lean and poised, confident and handsome. A mop of dark brown hair hung low, sort of messy yet neat at the same time, if that was even possible. His eyes -hard blue mixed with a hint of steel grey- seemed to brighten up the entire room. Even his smile was crooked in all of the right places, surrounded by a rough Van Dyke.

But his face wasn't what caught my attention the most. He was wearing a suit. A teacher wearing a suit - you don't see that every day. And oh, what a suit it was. It was Saville Row, pindot classic, Italian design, custom made, perfect cut and drape- oh I think I'm having a heart attack.

"Why don't you and Mr Royale take a seat near the front." Mr Doyle said to me, his arm waving over towards two empty seats. I was mesmerized by his designer label so much that I didn't realise what was happening until I felt Chase tugging on my arm.

As we walked over to the table, I leaned into Chase and whispered, "Mr Royale?"

Chase rolled his eyes. "The teachers are just as up-tight and posh as the school. They never call us by our first names."

I raised a brow in curiosity as Chase took a seat. I hesitantly sat down beside him and took another breath. I wasn't so excited anymore. Sitting just a couple of tables away from me was Boomer. He was so close that I could practically smell his cologne. I found myself wishing that Buttercup was here, even if she was still mad at me. She always made me feel calm. I don't know how she did it, but she had this quality that made me feel like everything was hunky-dory.

As Mr Doyle -who's name I learned was Zachary, as suggested by the plaque on his desk- began to write something on the board, I turned around to get a look at Boomer. I wasn't even sure why I wanted to look at him but it was too late to turn back now. He was sitting there casually in his seat. His eyes shifted towards the front, almost as if he was looking at me before I turned around, and his whole body stiffened as I openly stared at him like some crazy stalker. I must have looked insane just staring like that but at this point I didn't care.

While he was sitting up straight, Butch had both of his feet kicked up onto the table, both arms placed behind his head. He looked so much like Buttercup. It was almost scary. His eyes were closed as if he were sleeping -which he probably was- and every now and then he twitched. Well, at least some things hadn't changed, he still looked like some coffee addict with an eye problem.

I looked back at Boomer, only this time, he was looking at me too. Our blue eyes met and I felt my stomach ache. Buttercup had told me not to talk to him, but I wanted to talk to him so badly. I wanted to drag him out of class and yell his ears off. I wanted to scream at him - to ask him why he left, where he went, if he was still..evil. Every bone in my body was aching to rush over there and demand the answers to the questions that I so desperately wanted to ask. But I couldn't. It wasn't because Buttercup had told me not to -I don't do everything that she tells me to anymore- it was because that was Boomer Jojo. I couldn't trust that his answers would be the truth.

"So. Class," I heard Zachary Doyle say. My eyes blinked furiously at Boomer. I knew that I had to look away and so did he, judging by the way he frowned and looked at Mr Doyle. I swallowed and did the same. "We will be continuing from our topic last week, all about the Holocaust."

His accent was a thick Irish brogue. It all seemed to add up. Mr Doyle did look Irish, what with the goatee and the handsome eyes. He pointed to the board, the words 'Holocaust' scribbled across. He turned back to the class and took a step towards us. As he did so, his once kind eyes turned serious, and I could feel even Chase tensing up beside me. I had a feeling that something truly scary was about to happen.

"Now," He drawled. "To make sure that you lot were paying attention, can anyone tell me what The Holocaust is?"

The room silenced and I blinked.

Okay, so Chase was right to be scared about being late. Mr Doyle might have seemed as wonderful as the next guy, but when he got serious, it was darn terrifying. His eyes were like snake eyes, and he looked ready to pounce on anyone that didn't know the answer - one of those people being me. I had no clue what the Holocaust was. But I was new, he wouldn't go crazy if I couldn't asnwer..right?

Before I could rush out of the class in terror, someone saved me by answering.

"The Holocaust was the mass murder of millions of people leading up to and during World War Two."

I turned to face Chase, my face clearly showing shock. How did he know that? He must have been one of the types that actually paid attention during class. I raised my eyebrow at him; Rich, good-looking, a fabulous taste in clothing, and smart. How was I not jumping on his boy? For some messed up reason I wasn't interested in the most flawless boy in the entire of Ashville Academy. That's it - I'm going insane.

"Excellent, Mr Royale," Zachary complimented. However, even smiling, he still looked so scary. "Is there anyone that can tell me when the Holocaust took place?" Just as Chase perked up to answer again, Mr Doyle's blue-grey eyes scanned the small classroom and he pointed, his eyes landing on none other than the dark-haired Jojo brother. "Butch Jojo?"

Turning myself around, I looked back over at Boomer. My gaze turned to Butch. He didn't look very happy. Butch had finally kicked his legs off of the table and was sitting normally. His lips were pursed in a line, clearly he was unpleased about being singled out. Just from the look on his face I could tell that he didn't have the answer. I watched silently, interested to see how Butch would get himself out of this one. I was expecting him to make a snide remark or throw a fit - because that's exactly what Buttercup would do. But before he could make a fool out of himself, Boomer's voice broke out.

"Between 1933 and 1945." Boomer said quietly.

"That is correct, Mr Jojo," Zachary said. "But I wasn't asking you."

Boomer's face was scrunched up as though he was uncomfortable speaking up in class. But then again, he's a loner here, so of course he found it weird talking in class. I watched as Butch smiled at him in appreciation and through his arm around his shoulder, a grin lighting up his face. I felt my breath hitch in my throat. He was uncomfortable about answering but he did it for his brother. Someone that nice couldn't be evil, right? I shook my head. No, I couldn't make that decision based on something so small.

Then something else occurred to me.

"I thought that Brick was the smart one." I heard myself mumble.

Surely, I didn't think that anyone could have heard that, but apparently I was wrong, because the next thing I knew Chase was tapping on my shoulder. I turned to look at him quizically only to find that he was wearing the exact same expression.

"Huh?"

"Nothing," I dismissed, casually waving my hand around. He raised his eyebrow and frowned - Nice, that's all I need. Someone already thinks that I'm strange. "I was just, um, I was asking about that guy." I said as I slyly pointed towards Boomer, regretting the decision already. Chase followed my gaze and looked at Boomer. His face dropped, once again.

"Oh, him? That's Boomer. He's my roomate's brother. I don't actually know much about him, except that he's your typical loner-type and spends all of his time drawing in the back area." Or, in other words, the utopia. I remembered that place. It was where I had spoken to Boomer and he had filled my head with his words of wanting to be normal.

I turned back to Chase, my eyes lit with questions. It then occurred to me that I could just ask Chase about the Jojo brothers. He's close with Brick, he must know a thing or two. Maybe I wasn't allowed to speak to Boomer directly, but that didn't mean that I couldn't find out what I wanted to know. After all, Blossom did once tell me that there's always a second option to get what you want, that's why she was such a good superhero all of those years ago.

"So he hasn't gotten into _any_ trouble? Like, fighting or otherwise?"

"Boomer Jojo?" Chase asked followed by an amused chuckle. He was looking at me like I had just asked the most insane question he had ever heard - which for all I knew, I had. "No way. He's one of the most well-behaved guys in this school. Maybe it's because he doesn't talk to anyone, I don't know."

Desperate to get some answers, I pointed to Butch. "What about him?"

Chase's eyebrow raised. "What's with the sudden interest in the Jojo's?"

"I just-" I licked my lips, tasting the trace of my waterlily lip stick, and shook my head. "I don't have an interest in them. I'm just a curious person. They seem like the type that would get into trouble. I just want to make sure that my sisters don't get mixed up with trouble makers. They're...pretty friendly. Can't be too careful."

I blinked. Okay, that is officially the fastest I have ever thought. How I managed to come up with a flawless excuse that sounded totally genuine, I'm not sure, but Chase must have bought my lie because he simply chuckled and nodded at me. He cast a glance towards the Jojo brothers before leaning back in his seat, his brilliant brown eyes turning to look at me.

"Boomer is totally fine," Chase said, and I had to stop myself from grinning. I was right, I knew I was right. "Butch, he's got some anger issues but he hasn't gotten into too much trouble. And my roommate, Brick, he's got too much morals to do anything bad," He raised his eyebrow. "I don't know what made you think that the Jojo's are bad news, but they're pretty decent guys."

With that said, Chase turned back to face the front and tuned back into what Mr Doyle was saying. I tried to do the same, but it was hard after hearing Chase's words. I knew not to get my hopes up too high. Just because Chase hadn't seen them do anything evil, didn't mean that they hadn't. But it was still a huge leap ahead in my mission to get answers.

Although there was still just one question that I desperately wanted the answer to; How did the Jojo brothers end up in Ashville Academy?

* * *

**Regular POV**

_20 minutes earlier.._

Buttercup fumbled with the laces of her sneakers. After two minutes of failing to tie them, she simply stuffed the white laces underneath her feet. She had never been great at tying laces. Her father usually did them for her, and now she was too embarrassed to ask Blossom or Bubbles for help. She let out a sigh as she stood up from the floor, her shoes sorted, and she headed for the door. Waiting for her outside of their room was Daisey. The Australian was toying with her mahogany hair, pulling it back into a bun. Her cool blue eyes found Buttercup and she smiled.

The bell had yet to ring but Daisey knew that there was a good minute or two until it would. They planned to meet Blossom where they were stood so that all three could head off to their class together. English, with Mr Lomax, whom Buttercup had learned was not one of the nicest teachers in the school. But Buttercup wasn't nervous. She did well with handling teachers.

Her eyes scanned Daisey curiously. While the other day she had been wearing a shirt and skirt, rocking the 'girl next door' look, she had gone completely different for this day. Her tall frame was encased in a vintage, white lace dress. The lace was intricate, leaving small holes all over, each building the scene of flowers surrounding the material. Wrapped around her thin waist was a skinny brown leather belt, the colour contrasting excellently with her brunette hair and beige painted finger nails. All together -the dress, belt and the strappy white heels tied to her feet and up her legs- she looked positively angelic. Buttercup was glad that Bubbles was not around, considering she would gush and then talk non-stop over Daisey's dress, even if there was no designer label to be seen, she still appreciated trendy fashion.

Tearing her eyes from her roommate's dress, Buttercup crossed her arms over her chest.

"There you are." Daisey spoke chipperly before gazing down at Buttercup's outfit. Her smile fell crooked and her eyes burnt with distaste.

While Daisey had went for a dress, Buttercup chose her usual attire of a shirt and a pair of jeans. The shirt had short sleeves and was coloured a dark forest green. The neckline was low, however not too low, and the entire shirt was far too plain. Her jeans were ink black, fit with two corner pockets and a couple of rips that did not look intentional. They hung around her waist easily with no need for a belt, hanging high enough that the shirt could overlap them. The sneakers on her feet matched her shirt to a ten, the same shade of deep green. They were comfortable and went well with her outfit however they weren't the most stylish of shoes. Plain took a whole new meaning when it came to Buttercup's choice of clothing.

Daisey frowned instantly. She was expecting a little more effort than that.

"You look as good as gold, Buttercup. But you know, it couldn't hurt to wear something fashionable."

"You sound just like Bubbles." The dark-haired Utonium deadpanned.

"Nothin' wrong with that, roommate. Just promise me that you'll let me chose your outfit for tomorrow?"

"Daisey, there's nothing you could ever say that would make me wear something that I don't want to."

"Stubborn as always," Daisey moaned. She crossed her arms and played a pout on her red glossed lips. "Lighten up. I reckon that you could rock a band tee and a skirt in a way that most sixteen year olds can't."

"A skirt? Are you insane?"

"Only slightly."

Buttercup rolled her eyes. "I've never worn a skirt in my life and I don't plan to. Skirts are so._.girly._" She spat as if the word were venom.

"But you are a girl." Daisey raised her thin eyebrow in amusement.

"Barely."

"I'm so not going to disagree with that."

Just as Buttercup was prepared to shoot back another comment, the bell rang out loudly above her. She scrunched her face in annoyance of the sound. Daisey began to tap her foot wildly, her eyes scanning the halls for Blossom. The brunette had already checked Blossom and Bubbles' room to see if they were in there but they weren't. She assumed that they had went to the common room, which meant that it would take Blossom a good minute to make it to the second building.

For a moment, Buttercup's mind shifted back to the argument that she had with her sisters the night before. She felt bad for calling them naive but she also knew that she had a point. Still, she didn't want to go into her first class while in a fight with them. She knew that they would have to talk about the Jojo brothers later, to figure out what they were going to do about them, but for now she just wanted to be on good, normal terms with Blossom and Bubbles so that they could get their classes done with ease.

Before she knew it, her eyes caught sight of someone coming down the hall. Buttercup instantly noticed Blossom's long auburn hair and pink eyes. She pushed aside all anger towards Blossom and managed a smile. Blossom smiled back easily, and she looked relieved that Buttercup wasn't going to give her the cold shoulder. She mouthed the words 'I'm sorry' from across the hall and Buttercup nodded in response.

"Finally," Daisey said as Blossom stood before her. "You ready to go?"

"Yes."

Buttercup noticed her sister's nervousness from a mile off. She could read Blossom like an open book, she wasn't one of those people that could easily mask their emotions. Instinctively, Buttercup hooked her arm around Blossom's and grinned like nothing was amiss.

"Let's go make an impression."

Blossom's eyes narrowed. "Please behave today, Buttercup. You don't want to get detention in your first class."

"Oh _please,_" Buttercup waved her hand. "Have a little faith in me."

"I do try, it's just not that simple when you feel the need to act out all of the time."

"I'm sorry that not everyone can live up to your expectations, Bloss."

"Ladies!" Daisey butted in between the pair, shredding their arm-link. She through her arms up in the air in exasperation. "We do not have time for this. We've got exactly three minutes to get to class or Lomax will have yet another reason to give me detention."

Not giving them time to respond, Daisey marched forward and headed down the stairs. Buttercup and Blossom quickly followed her down. It took them one minute to get out of the second building and into the first, and then another minute to get to English class. Luckily, by the time that they found themselves at the door, the bell had yet to ring, and Daisey was saved from a torturous day of detention.

The three girls stepped through the door and into the threshold. The classroom was large, the walls being a clean and blinding white, and the floors covered in hardwood. It looked like any ordinary classroom that you would see in a high school. The board at the head of the room was black and covered in old chalk marks. The beige desks - two per table - were medium sized and had drawers hidden underneath for books and pencils. And of course, in front of the blackboard was the white desk that belonged to the teacher, big thick books covering the surface.

Daisey skipped forwards casually, humming a tune to herself, gaining the attention of the teacher sitting at his desk.

"Ah, Miss McCoy. I see you decided to join us this morning."

"Indeed I did," Daisey spoke boldly as she turned to look at him. "Still as sharp as a tack, Josh."

"It's Mr Lomax to you."

Rolling her expressive eyes, Daisey smirked. "Alrighty, Mr Lomax."

Blossom and Buttercup took a good look at Josh Lomax. The other day Daisey had branded him as 'the vilest of all the teachers in Ashville Academy', but he didn't look very vile from first glance. He was tall, and he appeared to be quite old, maybe in his late thirties. His rough, messy hair was the same dark brown as Daisey's, and his eyes were brown also, only lighter and kind-looking. His face was classically handsome, built with a slightly crooked nose, a wide-set jaw and high cheekbones accenting his thin lips. He wore a white buttoned-up dress shirt, matched with black silk slacks and clunky black shoes. If his outfit didn't immediately give him the 'English teacher' vibe, then the thick black glasses did the trick.

Tearing her eyes from Josh Lomax, Blossom looked around the room for a seat. When her eyes found the back of the class she saw someone familiar - someone so familiar that she lost ability to breathe.

"Brick." She whispered just loudly enough for Buttercup to hear.

Buttercup's eyes followed in the direction that her sister was looking. She was right. Sitting there, on his own at a two-seater table, was Brick Jojo. Brick's face was more handsome and refined than Blossom had remembered. He had a defined chin and firm jaw. His deep red eyes were spaced evenly apart, sat underneath thin eyebrows that seemed to curve naturally. His nose was straight and small in an endearing way. His lips, thin and perfect, sat in a line, hiding the way his dimples occasionally curved upwards when he smiled. And his hair - once long and light - was noticeably shorter, coming to the base of his neck, his once curtained fringe swept to the side, allowing his piercing red eyes to show clearly.

He had started to dress differently also. The red and black striped shirt and black pants had been switched out for something more mature and smart. Covering his top-half was a button-up shirt, the colours being the usual red and black that they had been before, however instead of the customary striped pattern, this shirt was checkered. Underneath was black, skin tight jeans, only making him look even taller, even while sat down. On his feet were basic red plimsolls.

And of course, something that Brick had never been seen without, a red snap-back hat sat on top of his head. It wasn't the same one he wore as a child, Blossom noticed, this one seemed to suit him better.

The auburn-haired boy stared back at them but he didn't react. He didn't scowl, he didn't smile, he didn't do anything, he just stared back. The reality came crashing back to both of the Utonium's as Daisey snapped her fingers in their direction. She waved them over to the back, right where Brick happened to be sitting. And if that wasn't worse, Blossom counted exactly three seats left, one of which being beside her counterpart.

As Daisey passed Brick, she decided to exchange pleasantries. "Good morning, Captain Genius."

Brick groaned but did not respond. He didn't want to get into an argument with his roommate's friend in front of all of his peers. He simply shot her a glare before turning to look back at the front. Blossom and Buttercup quickly darted forward, each eager to get to their seats and away from the peering eyes of the class. Buttercup was quick to rush into the seat beside Daisey, leaving her sister to sit beside Brick. She shot Blossom an apologetic smile but Blossom wasn't amused.

The red-head looked at Brick and swallowed. She kissed goodbye to her plan of not interacting with anyone by the last name 'Jojo' during classes. She hesitantly walked towards the desk and slipped into the seat beside Brick. Being so close to him caused her to tense up uncontrollably. It had been so many years and now she was just sitting beside him, waiting for the teacher to begin his lesson. This was not how she had expected to see Brick again after all of the years since he had disappeared. She played with her hands underneath the table, trying to think of how she should act.

As she looked at Brick from the corner of her eye, she wondered what it would be like if Boomer was found to be telling the truth. If she found out that they weren't evil anymore, that they no longer had powers, that they wanted to normal, then how would she cope? She would have to spend the next two years living a couple of doors away from Brick. It seemed like a nightmare come to life.

Her attention was torn from Brick when she heard the teacher speak up.

"I do hope that most of you are almost finished with your assignment that I set last week," Mr Lomax said in his deep voice. He picked up a piece of paper from his desk that contained the instructions for the assignment before sauntering down the class and stopping in front of Buttercup. "You and your sister can start working on yours today. I'll give you an extension so that you have the same time to complete it as the rest of the class have had. If there is anything that you don't understand, you can come see me in this room after classes and ask me."

Blossom glanced over at Buttercup, whom was reading the piece of paper with a sour look on her face. She sat forward slightly and caught Josh's attention.

"Uh, Mr Lomax, what is the assignment about?" Blossom asked, curious to find out why Buttercup looked so conflicted.

Josh took the paper from Buttercup's hands and passed it over to Blossom. "Wanting to start early, huh? I have a feeling that I might like you, Miss Utonium. The assignment is a lengthy review on a novel of your choice. The rest of the information is on that paper."

As Josh strolled back to the front of the class, Blossom looked down at the paper. She now realised why Buttercup seemed to already dislike this project. Buttercup never did enjoy reading anything that wasn't on the back of a cereal box. Her wise pink eyes skimmed the page and an excited smile lit up her face. From that moment, she instantly knew what book she wanted to base her assignment on. It didn't even matter that she knew for a fact that Buttercup had never read the book - Blossom knew she would end up writing the whole thing by herself either way. She put the paper down in front of her, and as she did, her eyes took notice of another piece of paper sitting beside it.

She quickly read the header - Every Day by David Levithan. Review. Year 2. Brick Jojo and Chase Royale.

Blossom's eyes grew as she openly stared at the assignment. She began to read it slowly, wondering if Brick had written such an amazing review of such a brilliant book. Before she realised what was happening, Brick's hand waved over the page, and only then did she realise that he had seen her reading his paper.

"See something interesting?" Brick's voice held slight amusement.

When Blossom looked up, her eyes met with those of red. Not knowing what to say, she simply sat there with a stunned look on her face. Brick continued to watch her with his eyebrow raised. Blossom contemplated if she should just turn away, after all, that was the deal. She had told Bubbles that they shouldn't talk to any of the ex Rowdyruff Boys, but she also had a feeling that Brick wasn't going to stop giving her that amused look unless she answered him right away.

"Uh, I'm sorry," Blossom muttered. She cleared her throat awkwardly. "It's just..you like David Levithan?"

Brick responded with a nod. "He's my favourite author."

"Mine too."

They stared at each other for what seemed like hours until finally Blossom looked away. She looked at the board at the head of the class and refused to acknowledge Brick's presence for the remainder of the class. Although she could tell that he was still looking at her. Blossom was silent for the rest of the hour as was Brick. And when the bell rang, Blossom rushed straight out of class, she didn't even wait for Buttercup and Daisey. She just had to get as far away from Brick Jojo as possible before she broke her 'Don't talk to one of them' rule for the second time. However she had a feeling that somewhere Bubbles was breaking her rule too.

* * *

As the first bell sounded, Bubbles and Chase rose from their table. The remaining students began to pick up their books and do the same. Bubbles looked around the room and her eyes once more landed on Boomer. She felt slightly empowered that she had made it a whole hour in the same room as him without going insane and trying to get answers out of him. Her curiosity had never been a problem before, she had always been a very curious person but she knew how to control it, although this time she had to try much harder. For years since the Jojo brothers left town, Blossom and Buttercup had never thought of them, they never dwelled over it, but Bubbles had always just wanted to know what happened, why they disappeared off the face of the earth. Even if it was just for her own peace of mind.

Eager to get to her next class without running into one of her old enemies, Bubbles scooted past her chair and rushed towards the door as fast as her short legs could carry her. She didn't even think about the fact that she didn't know where to go, she just crossed her arms tightly against her chest and sped walked right out of the room. She wondered if her sisters had seen Brick in their class, if Blossom had contradicted her own rule and spoke to him. Shaking her head, Bubbles tried to rid her mind of the issue and focus on her second class.

When she made it half-way down the hall she heard Chase's voice call out. Spinning around, she caught sight of the tall Australian sprinting towards her. Chase stopped right in front of her and surprisingly wasn't panting from the run. He put his hands on his hips, shooting Bubbles a look of playful curiosity.

"You ran out of that room like you were being chased by a dingo."

Bubbles raised her eyebrow at Chase's 'dingo' comment before shrugging. "I guess I was just anxious to get to my next class."

"Clearly."

Ignoring Chase's amused expression, Bubbles dug into the small pocket at the side of her blue sundress. She pulled out her timetable and examined it closely. She glanced back up at Chase and smiled casually.

"It looks like I have French next."

"I've actually got Math right now, but I can take you to your class if you want?"

Bubbles shook her head. "That's alright, I'll find my way. Plus, I wouldn't want you getting detention just to take me to class."

"Very noble of you, new girl," Chase smiled at Bubbles. He took a step forward before turning back around and raising his eyebrow. "Are you sure? I mean, detention wouldn't be so terri-"

"Go, Chase."

"Are you really sure?"

"Yes."

"So you're one hundred percent sure?"

"Chase, I'm sure!" Bubbles laughed musically.

"Fine, you win. I'll see you later on." The Australian conceded before taking off down the hall.

Bubbles watched him go and shook her head to herself, fighting back another laugh. She had almost forgotten how good it felt to have a friend. Of course, she did have friends back in Townsville, but the only real friends she had were Robin Schneider and Mitch Mitchelson. And now she could only talk to them via email and text messages. But she had contacted Robin the night before to tell her that she missed her. Robin had told her that she was happy that Bubbles was getting her fresh start, and she mentioned that her and Mitch had had an amazing one month anniversary date. Bubbles congratulated her best friend before ending the conversation and going to sleep. She hadn't registered just how much she missed Robin until she said goodbye all over again.

As a swarm of students passed her, Bubbles spun herself around. Just when she was wondering who she should ask for directions she happened to bump into someone. Staggering back she looked up at the face of whom she had knocked into and found herself looking at none other than her counterpart. Bubbles cursed her bad luck for once again striking at the worst possible time.

"Uh.." Bubbles mumbled. She closed her mouth, realising that she was dangerously close to breaking Blossom's 'don't talk to a Jojo today' rule.

"I'm sorry," Boomer said. "I wasn't looking."

There was more unbearable silence. Bubbles stood rigid. She was unsure of what to do or say, or if she should say anything at all. As she stood there, gawking at Boomer and saying absolutely nothing, she had never felt more awkward. Boomer's eyes lowered to the timetable in Bubbles' hands. He skimmed the first paragraph before looking back up at her and offering a friendly smile.

"You've got French next?" Boomer said, although he wasn't asking. Before Bubbles could respond he spoke up again. "I can take you there. You look kind of lost."

Bubbles blinked, realising that she had to break Blossom's rule now. What she didn't know couldn't hurt her, Bubbles thought to herself.

"No, it's fine," She said in a quiet, awkward voice. Her lips curved upwards. "I'm a big girl. I can find my way."

"It's really no problem. I actually have French next anyway so you can just follow."

For a moment, Bubbles pondered what to do. She knew that if she rejected and tried to find her own way that not only would she be late, but Boomer would know that she was trying to avoid him. If she was going to find out if he was still evil, she couldn't have him realising what she was doing. After a minute of prolonged muteness Bubbles nodded reluctantly.

"Okay then. I'll follow."

She waited for Boomer to start walking and then she followed his lead. She made sure that they weren't walking beside each other, after all, she didn't want one of her sisters to see them walking together and get the wrong idea. This was strictly business, no friendship or even slight emotion involved. This was just Boomer showing her to get to class. Bubbles felt more awkward with every step and every second of silence. She suddenly wished that she had just let Chase take her there. She made a mental note to stop being so darn lovely all the time.

"Three months." Boomer said suddenly.

Bubbles slowed her pace as a confused expression took over her face. "Excuse me?"

"Come on," The blue-clad boy said. He turned his face to look at Bubbles. "We're counterparts. I..know you. You want to know how long my brothers and I have been in Ashville. Well, it's been three months."

"Oh." Before she could comprehend what she was doing, Bubbles sped up so that she was almost walking right beside him. Her curiosity was once again getting the better of her and she couldn't stop herself from trying to get the answers she wanted anymore. "Then..if you don't mind me asking, why were you sent here in the first place?"

"We didn't have a choice," Boomer continued to walk ahead of Bubbles. He took a longing breath as he recalled the day that he knew he was going to be going to Ashville Academy. "It's Butch, he has these anger issues. Sometimes he just can't control how livid he gets. One little thing will set him off. And one day, someone got on the wrong side of Butch's temper. Brick and I tried to break up the fight and ended up getting involved ourselves. The other guy came out of it a lot worse than we did," His face dropped instantly. "Considering that we didn't have any real guardians, they sent us here."

Bubbles' brows furrowed. She looked on and processed everything that she had just heard. One answer down, yet it only left her with so many more questions; What happened to the other guy? Is Butch's anger still a threat to people around him? Where was it that they were sent here from? Bubbles debated asking each and every question. But she stopped herself before she could. Boomer had already told her way more than she should know, and they didn't have time to go into everything right now.

Stopping herself, Bubbles watched as Boomer did the same. She looked at him and blinked.

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

Boomer looked down at his shoes. "I don't have any reason to keep anything from you," Instead of waiting for Bubbles to respond, Boomer nodded towards the door that was closest to them. "We're here."

Without another word he wandered into the classroom, leaving Bubbles to stand there, even more confused than she had been to begin with.

* * *

_Eleven a.m._

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

After a long three hours of listening to teachers ramble on about subjects that absolutely no one was paying attention to - except for Blossom - I was finally free to do what I like for the rest of the day. My first instinct was to head over to the common room to find anyone that I recognised. I had spent all three classes being so utterly and completely bored that at that minute, I would have given anything to do something fun, heck I would have spent an hour listening to Daisey and Chase yell at each other in their loud accents if it meant that I could squeeze in a game of pool.

The classes were easier than I had expected. No one tried to talk to me and no one got in my way. The teachers barely acknowledged my presence. All in all, I didn't know why my sisters had been pulling their hair out in worry for. I mean, sure, Ashville isn't like any other school. I didn't catch the bus home after my last class because I lived here now. But it's not like Ashville is like any run-of-the-mill boarding school either. It wasn't like the boarding schools that I had seen in those cliché lifetime movies that Bubbles would always watch on Friday nights. I knew that there was something different about this place the second that I had stepped inside my first class. What that thing was, I didn't know yet, but I had a feeling that I soon would.

I marched out of the first building, pushing past a couple of goth-looking kids. One of them had the nerve to scowl at me as she flipped her dreadfully long black hair. I sneered at the goth and watched as her dark blue eyes hardened. Her friend - hair as equally black, eyes as additionally blue - tugged at the girl's arm and pulled her into the first building. So maybe it couldn't hurt to make a couple of enemies, I figured. It would be boring if I didn't.

Just when I was about to make a D-turn to the common room I stopped. My eyes traveled to the giant steel gate that was keeping me from home. My real home, I mean, Townsville. Robin and Mitch, my pool, Townsville High School. It was all so out of reach because of that damned gate. I examined it from head-to-toe. Being an ex superhero, I knew how to climb gates twice as high as that one, it would be zero problem for me. If only there wasn't an alarm system that alerted the whole staff the second that someone touched it. I learned that from Daisey. She told me that she had tried just about every method possible to escape. Eventually she just gave up trying and accepted that she couldn't go back home until she was eighteen.

Well, that was Daisey's loss. Buttercup Utonium never gives up.

"I'll find a way," I thought to myself. "I always do."

Tearing my gaze from the gate, I turned around and began walking towards the third building. It was cold outside and I could tell that it was going to rain soon due to the grey clouds hovering above me. I wondered if I would ever see sun in this town, so far all I've seen is the depressing and dull effect of rain and wind. That's Kansas for you, I guess. I hugged my arms against my chest and felt that unfamiliar feeling of goosebumps running across them. I hated the weather. It was just a reminder that I was forced to live somewhere I didn't like. And since when did I ever do something that I didn't want to?

I walked and walked until I reached the third building. I pushed through the double doors and my shoes clicked along the hard-wood floors as I strolled inside. I headed for the common room, or the Sanctuary as people here call it. It was hardly a sanctuary to me. Sure, it was a place to escape to after a long morning of classes. It was the equivalent of a park or a place of solitary to people who lived out there in normality. While they all got to live freely in those places, my sanctuary was a room filled with computers and pool tables. Another reminder that this wasn't Townsville - this, in my opinion, was hell on earth.

When I got inside the common room I saw Blossom. She was standing by one of the pool tables, hanging out with Daisey and Rich Boy by the look's of it. She was laughing with them. She looked so at home that it confused me. Barely two days in this place and she can act like she's been here her entire life. I'll never figure out how she manages to do that.

My sight set on them, I took a step forward and prepared to go over. And then I heard _his_ voice.

"How was class, Sunshine?"

I blinked.

Every bone in my body screamed in anger as I turned around and faced Butch. I could feel my fists clenching uncontrollably and I knew that if he kept talking to me then I wouldn't be in control of my actions anymore. He just makes me so mad. Seeing him and remembering everything that he had done before he disappeared. The way he stole things, hurt people and got away with so much crime. There were times were I couldn't do anything, you know? Townsville was a big town with a lot of danger and sometimes my sisters and I couldn't save everyone and everything. When I think about how many times he got off scott-free it makes my blood boil. And here he is, high and mighty Butch freaking Jojo, getting to live the perfect, human life that I always wanted but never got because I had to protect a town that I no longer get to live in.

Sure, maybe I was jealous of him, because deep down there is a chance that Butch isn't evil and he's been living this regular teenage life since he left Townsville. But then there's that other chance. The chance that Butch is still the same terrible, corrupt boy that he was six years ago.

I tried to push my anger back, which was hard considering how much I wanted to make Butch pay, but I did it anyway and it worked. Once it had I knew that I had to get away from him before I did something that would make me the target of Blossom's yelling.

"If you know what's good for you, Butch, you'll walk as far away from me as you can." I warned, my eyes narrowing into his.

Butch took a daring step forward. I crossed my arms, my signature way to stop myself from hitting someone, and tilted my head at him. Butch didn't even seem phased by my threat. Then again, Butch, like me, has been known to never fear anything. Trying to scare him off was going to be impossible. I wasn't even sure what I wanted from this. I wanted Butch to leave Ashville of course, but then I'd never know if he was still evil, I'd never know if he would go off to terrorize another town. I guess him and his brothers being here was too much of a surprise that I'm not sure how I should be acting or feeling. That's what sucks about the situation - I don't know what to do and it makes me feel weak. I don't like feeling weak.

"Would it kill you to be nice for once?" He asked me, amusement filling his tone.

"I tried being nice once," I replied with as much sarcasm as I could muster and I nodded. "Worst two minutes of my life."

His lips curved into a smirk. That smirk that I hated to damn much. It made him look so evil and yet so..teenage..at the same time. I didn't know whether I was looking at a criminal or an average boy.

"Don't be so cold. You know, we're technically not enemies anymore."

I felt my palms clench again. "I might have switched from a superhero in Townsville to a regular-joe in Kansas but that _doesn't_ make us any less enemies. I still can't stand you. You're still evil, and I'll prove it and kick your ass right out of this town and into a jail cell, Jojo."

Butch took another step towards me. He looked me right in the eye and I held his gaze, my head held high because he towered over me. He was so close that I could smell his aftershave, mixed with the horrid smell of cigarette smoke. Butch mirrored my earlier expression and titled his head, an almost entertained smile tugging at his lips.

"If I was still evil, I wouldn't be in a boarding school, would I?"

"You're up to something," I shot back. "I know that someone like you wouldn't just wake up one morning and decide to be a good person. Your idiot brother might have been able to get Bubbles to believe your sob story but I'm just not that gullible. I'll find out what it is that you're up to, and when I do, you're going to wish that I never came to this town."

"Listen," Butch began. He leaned in closer to me and I could feel myself preparing to punch him if he got any closer than that. "Whether you believe it or not, we have changed. We gave up the 'Rowdyruff Boy' title as soon as Mojo got put away for good. So unfortunately for you, you're going to be stuck with me for the next two years, Utonium," He smiled before taking a step back. I finally unclenched my fist as soon as I saw him ready to walk away. "And I have a feeling that this is going to be an interesting two years."

With that, he turned around and walked out of the common room. I stood there and watched the spot that he once stood. My anger was still there, I could feel myself wanting to just wail on anything to get my frustration out. Luckily, over the three years since losing my powers I learned how to keep my anger in check. But it was different this time, though, I almost couldn't stop my anger. It was something to do with Butch. He just had this way of getting me so riled up that I can't see clearly. He had been able to do it since we were kids but back then it didn't matter because I was a hero and he was a villain, it was fine to project the anger onto him. I couldn't do that anymore without getting myself into trouble.

I shook my head, trying to rid myself of bad thoughts. I was so close to being one of those crazy, head-clutching people all because of Butch. Whenever I saw him it was like I had to just hit a wall or something. That's normal though, isn't it? When you hate someone, the anger does that, it could happen to anyone. The only thing that bothered me was that it wasn't happening to my sisters. Bubbles had seen Boomer before Bloss or I even knew they were here, and she didn't attack, she talked to him, she soaked in every word out of his mouth without alarm. And Blossom? She sat beside Brick for an hour and she didn't seem angered in the least. Maybe it was just me.

"Butters, over here!"

I looked up to see Daisey waving her hand at me. Blossom and Chase had finally noticed me there and were looking at me too. I glanced back over to the door. Butch was definitely gone. Shaking my head again, I turned back around and started walking towards my sister. I looked at her pink eyes and noticed that she seemed worried. I'm guessing she hadn't just noticed me then. She must have seen me talking to Butch. That's the only explanation I could come up with as to why she looked so dire.

When I got to them, I noticed that Daisey and Chase were in the middle of a heated pool match, while Blossom was watching them with disinterest. She never did like any games that didn't involve using your brain. I actually missed when Bubbles and I would be playing Twister in the back-yard and Blossom would sit there and lecture us on how much a waste of time it was.

"Who's winning?" I asked as I eyed the pool table.

"Me," Chase raised his hand and grinned. "Of course."

Daisey rolled her eyes. "Don't be so quick to gloat, Chase. I'm so close to evening the score."

"Like you could ever beat..."

As the two Australians started to bicker - again - I tuned them out and stared at the table in a daze. All I could think about was going back to my room and going to sleep, mainly because I was still hoping that this was all a dream that I could wake up from. That was what I wanted; To wake up in a world where I was still in Townsville, where the Rowdyruff Boys were still out of our lives, and where my dad was still with us. But it was extremely unlikely that I had dreamed an entire month and more. How unfortunate for me.

"What did Butch want?" Someone whispered into my ear.

I glanced to the side and found that Blossom had moved beside me and was looking at me with nothing but curiosity and worry in her eyes. I already knew that the worry wasn't for me, she just wanted to know if I had broken her 'no violence' rule. I don't even know why I was so adamant to keep Blossom happy, I should be able to attack Butch Jojo if I want to. Then again, I don't really feel like getting kicked out of Ashville only to get sent to one of those gross foster homes.

Pursing my lips, I whispered back. "Nothing to worry about."

Blossom's face turned serious. She glanced at Daisey and Chase to make sure that they weren't paying attention to us, which they weren't, they were too busy arguing to even notice us anymore. She leaned back into me and spoke. "The Jojo's haven't told anyone about how they were created. Everyone thinks that they are just three normal teenagers."

My eyes narrowed. "How exactly do you know this? Don't tell me you've been having heart-to-hearts with Brick Jojo."

"Of course not," She said in a defensive tone. "I know because Daisey asked me about Brick's eyes. He told people that he wears red contacts."

"Wait, if no one knows that the Jojo's are villains then that means-"

"No one knows about us either." Blossom finished for me.

Blossom and I stared at each other with an equal look of intensity. I could see that she was starting to come over to Bubbles' belief that the Rowdyruff Boys really had changed. I still couldn't believe it, not without some form of proof, but that seemed impossible to find considering the Jojo's were acting so perfectly civil that I couldn't tell if they were planning to do something evil or not. I knew what I had to do though. Either way, my sisters and I were going to be stuck here until we turned eighteen. So, if the boys didn't do anything bad in the space of this month, if they could prove to be just regular pain-in-the-backsides, then I would believe it too.

But one month was a long time, and who knew what would happen by then.

* * *

_"This is what love does: It makes you want to rewrite the world. It makes you want to choose the characters, build the scenery, guide the plot. The person you love sits across from you, and you want to do everything in your power to make it possible, endlessly possible. And when it's just the two of you, alone in a room, you can pretend that this is how it is, this is how it will be."_

_- David Levithan, Every Day_

**Regular POV**

As the sky darkened outside, Blossom found herself seeking comfort from her most loved authors. She stood in the library that Daisey had shown her the day before. The library was small, almost suffocatingly, but that was to be expected considering the room was basically adjoined to the common room. The walls were painted a deep brown, riveting dark mahogany, and the floors were lined with a rough, tasteful red carpet. On the third wall held a large bookcase that seemed to spread all around the room. The bookshelf was a brown lighter than the walls and must have held over two hundred books, all stacked high and arranged in alphabetical order by the author's names.

Three tables sat in the perfect centre of the claustrophobic room. The first table - bang in the centre, a wooden make - had three chairs tucked safely under for people to sit at while they read. There was another table the same beside the first, although this table only had one chair joining it and the size was slightly smaller. Adjacent to both tables was another one - a huge, higher one - and it wasn't rounded like the other two. This table was rectangular and could fit at least ten people, five on each side, even though there was only six chairs tucked inside.

Blossom appreciated the tables. The common room, being as crowded as it was, generally was really noisy. This small library was as quiet as can be. In her mind, the common room wasn't Blossom's sanctuary, this room was. It was perfect down to every last detail. She didn't even seem to mind the fact that the room had that familiar library smell of old books and lemon pledge.

She headed to the back of the room to search for one of her favourite books. She knew that they would have it. And she was right. As she scanned the bookshelf at the 'D' section, she found the book that she was looking for. It wasn't one of those large books with small, easy to understand words or huge pictures that distracted the reader from the true point. Instead, it was a small novel, written by David Levithan, Blossom's favourite author of all-time, and as she had recently learned, Brick's also.

Once Blossom had located the book, she took it over towards the single-seater table. She was surprised to see that three kids took up the table beside hers. When she had came in with Daisey the night before, it was completely empty. Blossom just assumed that the students never read in the library, or a more plausible option, no one else appreciated the beauty of novels. The three kids, she recognised, were in her English class. One girl with beautifully long blonde hair, dark eyes and dressed like a tight-up sorority sister. Sat beside her was a boy, who looked like he didn't belong in the blonde girl's crowd at all. He had scruffy black hair and eyes that looked grey, not to mention the thick glasses and the slacks he wore. The girl sitting opposite him was clearly his sister, she looked exactly like him, minus the specks. Blossom felt herself smile. Maybe the school wasn't built around cliques after all.

She sat down at her table and opened her book up to the first page. She had read this same book five times before yet with every read she found something new - something that she hadn't noticed before. Her hands clutched the edges of the book tighter as she dove in, her clever pink eyes lit in fascination. She was practically sunk deep into the plush, brown chair and she had managed to block out everything else going on around her so that she could read in solitude.

Blossom was so absolutely wrapped up in the book that she didn't even hear someone walk up towards her.

"The Realm of Possibility, huh?"

The auburn haired Utonium tore her eyes from the beige page of the book and looked up. Her lips pursed instantly in annoyance at the sight of Brick Jojo. Brick was standing in front of her table with his hands on his hips. The door to the library was left open, explaining why Blossom hadn't been alarmed by the sound of a door closing.

As she put the book down on the table, Brick pulled up a chair from the table on his left. He placed it opposite from Blossom and sat down. His eyebrow raised as his eyes scanned the book cover.

"What do you think of it?" He asked curiously.

Blossom was silent for a moment. She wasn't sure if she should humour him with an answer or just walk away. Then again, if she left, not only would Brick have managed to disrupt her peaceful afternoon but she would also been seen as a coward in the eyes of her possible enemy. Blossom met his smouldering red eyes and her own narrowed.

"Personally, I think that Levithan is spectacular at capturing all of the experiences and emotions of young adulthood."

A smile tugged at Brick's lips, but he stopped it from showing just in time. "I'm assuming that you're basing your assignment on this?"

Nodding, Blossom's eyes shot back down to the book. She could feel her foot taping repeatedly underneath the table. While she wasn't completely uncomfortable with Brick trying to talk to her anymore, she didn't understand what was happening. When they were little, Brick wasn't friendly, he wasn't civil and he didn't just talk with someone. He always had an agenda. There was always a catch, something in it for him.

Blossom knew that he had obviously changed but he couldn't have changed this much. In a weird way she wanted to understand him - not because she wanted to be his friend. But because she wanted to know who she was dealing with. And this Brick Jojo, he was nothing like the boy she once knew, and she no longer knew what to expect from him.

"You know," Brick drawled casually, gaining Blossom's undivided attention again. "I read my first Levithan book when I was nine years old."

"Did you steal the book?" She deadpanned, sarcasm absent from her tone.

Brick chuckled half-heartedly. "Maybe I did. Maybe I didn't."

In that moment, Blossom closed the book completely and looked right at her counterpart. Her face fell deadly serious as she decided to toss her own rule of ignoring Brick and ask him something. She turned to look at the three students she had seen earlier and noticed that they were all so engrossed with talking to each other that they wouldn't over-hear what Blossom was about to say. She turned back to face Brick and lay her elbows on the table, leaning closer.

"Can I ask you something? Seriously though, no lies, no sarcastic comments, just an answer."

"I'm betting you want a lot of answers."

Blossom shook her head. "No. I don't care about you enough to ask where you ended up after you disappeared. There's only one thing that is really bugging me."

Raising his eyebrow, Brick nodded. "Then go ahead. Ask me."

"Why haven't you told them?"

"I'm not following you, Utonium."

"About your past. Chase and Daisey, and whatever other friends you have here. Why haven't you told anyone about how you were created, about how you're not normal like them?"

Brick pursed his lips. His eyes hardened almost instantly. "Have you told them?"

"Of course not."

"Then I think you need to ask yourself why you haven't told people. I don't want to walk these halls and have people know that I'm only on this earth because of you. I don't want to be mislead as a villain or a freak just because I was born with a purpose to destroy," Brick answered sharply, his face so serious that Blossom felt her skin tingling with alarm. "Ever since I was younger I knew that my only mission was to get rid of you and your sisters. But when Mojo was sent to jail and HIM was out of dodge, I saw the opportunity to deny fate and live my life the way that I wanted to. So I took it and now I'm here, I'm seen as normal, a true human. That, Blossom, is why I haven't told anyone and why I refuse to."

Blossom was taken-aback by Brick's words. He sounded so sincere that even Blossom for a second found herself believing him. She mentally shook her head and forbid herself from falling for his words. Until she could confirm that Brick was no longer a threat to anyone, she couldn't believe anything that came out of his mouth.

"You know, over the years of us being enemies I learned a lot about you, Brick. I learned that you were like me in every single aspect to be seen. Which is why I know that like myself you are a _fantastic_ liar." Blossom replied bluntly.

"I didn't say that you had to believe me," Brick's voice raised slightly. "But you're right. I am like you in every aspect. So why don't you take a moment to think about everything that I just said." His tone softened. "I wanted freedom from the life that I was given, are you going to sit there and tell me that not for even a _second_ you wished that you could be normal too? When you were out saving Townsville, knowing that no one but yourself could get the job done, you didn't feel at all trapped, wishing that you could be seen as a regular human from the eyes of your peers?"

"My situation is different." Blossom muttered as she looked down at the table.

"How can it be any different? We both wanted out, Blossom."

"Yes, I wanted out, okay? I wanted this," She waved her arm around the room for affect. "But that does not make what you said true. You might sound sincere but you were raised to decide. I saved lives, day after day, I deserve this chance to be seen as normal, but all you ever did was cause the messes that my sisters and I had to pick up. You have been evil since the day that you were born, and right now I can't see anything but evil."

"I thought you might understand. Of all people, I never thought that you would so closed minded," Brick rose from his seat and shook his head at Blossom. He turned on his heel, heading for the door, before turning around one last time. His red eyes fell onto the book sitting in front of her. "Good luck with the assignment, Utonium."

Blossom watched her counterpart leave. A frown etched onto her face and she couldn't remove it. His words stuck in her mind like a plague, his voice that she never thought she would hear again constantly playing over and over. Blossom knew better than to let Brick Jojo get to her but she couldn't stop it. She wasn't closed minded. She stuck by what she believed and she found nothing wrong with that. But this insult was such an imperfection that Blossom couldn't stop thinking about it.

She looked down at the book and recalled Brick telling her that David Levithan was also his favourite author. Even after years of being apart and living very different lives they were still so similar. Blossom glanced up again and watched the door that Brick had walked through in silence.

She now understood exactly why Bubbles had been so quick to believe in what Boomer had told her, and not because she was naive, something much worse - the story sounded remarkably true.

* * *

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

Later that night, I had left my sisters to catch some quality time with myself. It had been a hectic day, to say the least, and I personally was sick of hearing the sounds of other voices. I decided to check out the in-door swimming pool that Daisey had told me about. She had played it up a lot so I just hoped that she wasn't making it out to be better than it was. I did enjoy to swim, after all. Most people find me the football playing and power tennis type, but that would be far from the truth. Sure, I'm not the worst football player in the world, I had spent many afternoons kicking Mitch Mitchelson's behind with my ball playing skills. Swimming just seemed..better.

I remember when I was nine years old. It was late September, the leaves had just stared to change colour from dank brown to an orange so bright that it gave Blossom's hair a run for it's money, and The Professor had installed a pool in the back yard, just to allow my sisters and myself some extra excercise to prepare us for long days of protecting dear 'ole Townsville.

I had never swam before so of course I was nervous - yeah, me, nervous. Strange, right? Anyway, Bubbles and I got in the pool. Blossom was busy with her boring old books to do anything interesting so I asked Bubbles to try it out with me. She went in first and started swimming around like she owned the place, and then I stepped in. Long story short - I drowned. Bubbles eventually realised that I was at the bottom of the pool and she pulled me up. After that, I realised that there was yet another thing that my sisters could do that I couldn't. So I did what any brilliant minded person would do - I kidnapped Bubbles' chreshired teddy wear and forced her to teach me how to swim, and she did, mainly because she didn't want to wake up with Octi's head in her bed the next morning.

I got good at it. Amazingly good. After three weeks of training, I was better than Bubbles herself. And I swam every single day, before and after catching robbers and criminals, even during school hours when I would pretend to be sick just so that I could stay home and swim. The funny part of the story is that it all started out as a way to get one over on my sisters, to finally be better at them at something, and I ended up loving it more than being a darn superhero. I guess that's what I miss the most about my chard home in Townsville. My pool is gone.

As soon as I walked into the room, I was struck with darkness. The only light I could see came from the pool lights. Still, they gave me enough light to see around. The first thing that I noticed, of course, was the pool. It was big, a lot bigger than my pool back home, and there was diving boards sitting at the far end. I didn't even know how to dive off of a board. But I would by tomorrow morning. I started to walk towards the pool and I took it all in. I guessed the size had to be about 14 x 28 foot if not bigger. It made the generally large room look tiny. I counted six ladders all spread out evenly throughout the width and two diving boards, I couldn't count the pool lights, that would take too long.

I pulled back and looked around the rest of the room. There was a couple of benches on the right side of the pool. They were probably for students to sit on when this swimming pool was used for Gym class or something. On the left side there was this huge cabinet that held a bunch of swimming equipment, like floats and such. If someone in this place still needed floats to swim, then I didn't want to know about it.

I bent down in front of the pool and looked at it. The water was still but still had that usual shine. I reached in and touched the water with my finger tips and I smiled. It might not have been the pool that I was used to back in Townsville but this one was bigger and warmer, that had to be a plus, right?

Just as I rose back up into a standing position I could swear that I heard someone coming my way. I stood perfectly still, staring at the wall opposite to the door. I could feel my instincts kicking in with every footstep. Someone was definitely about to walk through that door.

"We just keep running into each other," A rough voice called out from the door. I spun myself around instantly, my bright green eyes narrowing at the sight of him. That counterpart of mine. He stood there straight, a crooked smirk on his face, his arms crossed against his chest. "Maybe the universe is trying to tell us something."

I took a step forward and he did the same. The whole room was a dimmed dark, but I could still make out his face and clothes thanks to the pool lights. He was still wearing that god-awful smile when he began to walk closer to me. I considered my options; 1. Hit him. 2. Hit him. 3. Push him in the pool. All three would result in possibly getting thrown out of Ashville, and also getting an ear-full from Blossom about my behaviour. Sighing, I decided to do none of the above.

While I had stopped moving after one step, he was still slowly walking towards me, and he was getting dangerously close. I remembered the last time that we had been this close, when I didn't recognise him by the football field. I was stood right in front of him - so close that he could blow his disgusting cigarette smoke into my face - and I just thought that he was some random idiot. Only it turned out that I was the idiot. Lovely.

"Yeah," I played along, lowering my voice as I realised that it echoed in the room. "The universe is telling me to beat your brains out until you don't even remember your own name." I bit out hatefully and scowled at him. Butch didn't look phased at all, in fact, he looked amused. And he had the nerve to smirk. Oh, if I could, I would so wipe that smirk off of his stupid face.

Butch stopped walking when he was two steps in front of me. "Or maybe the universe it telling us that we should be friends."

"_Friends_?" I spat the word as if it didn't taste right in my mouth. I studied his tone for deceit. He didn't sound like he was trying to trick me, he wouldn't be that stupid, but he also didn't sound one hundred percent sincere either. Either way, there was zero chance of me taking him seriously. "Get this through your thick skull, Butch. You and I-" I waved my hand between us to emphasise my point. "-will never be anything, let alone_ friends._"

I crossed my arms and raised my chin high. For a second I wondered if he had gone mentally ill. The thought of being friends with a Rowdyruff boy was just plain insanity. He was created to kill me, wasn't he? One thing that I learned while being a Powerpuff Girl; Don't get involved with the enemy. I learned that the hard way with that stupid green dude, Ace. Emotions when it comes to criminals makes you weak, and I'm far from that.

Taking another step forward, Butch chuckled. "We're technically living together. Wouldn't it make sense for us to be friendly with each other?"

Instantly I shook my head. "That's not a good enough reason for us to exchange pleasantries," I said firmly just hoping that my point was getting across. My eyebrow raised in curiosity as I poked his chest and continued. "Why do you want to be my friend anyway?"

Butch's lips curved into a smile. "Believe it or not, I find you interesting."

I laughed in his face. Weirdly enough, he didn't twitch in annoyance like he used to when I laughed at him. "A lot of people find me interesting. They don't all ask to be my friend. I'm pretty sure that we can live in the same building and still hate each other."

"It'll never work, Sunshine," Butch began to say as he turned around. He started walking towards the door slowly. When he finally made it to the door, he turned back around and looked at me. "We're going to have to play nice eventually."

Smirking, I batted my eyes. "I'd rather die."

I watched him leave, and I caught the sound of him chuckling to himself as he did so. It's almost like he was trying to rile me up so that I would do something that could easily get me in trouble - then again, that does sound like something I would do, so I guess that is also something that Butch would do. Urgh, this 'counterpart' thing is beyond confusing. Whatever he was trying to do was working though, I wanted to lash out at him so badly that it ached.

Well, it was obvious what I had to do. I had to spend the new two years of my life living down the hall from Butch Jojo and his brothers, and as long as I found out that they weren't evil, I couldn't do anything that would get me kicked out of this school; Aka: Punch one of them.

"I'm _so_ screwed."

* * *

**~ Indeed she is. There we have chapter two, and I hope you enjoyed it. More questions of the Jojo's disappearance will be answered in the next chapter, so keep a look out. Thank you for reading, angels!~**

**Next Chapter - (Bubbles' Chapter) A city-wide blackout causes problems for two Utoniums. Bubbles reluctantly helps Boomer out when he is in need. Meanwhile, Buttercup spends the hour trapped in an elevator with one of the Jojo brothers. And everyone learns a lesson in kindness.**

_**Don't forget to drop a review. It will only take a second (:**_

**- Allie**


	3. So Human

**Ashville Academy**

**~ Hello guys! This chapter is up quicker than the last. After I posted chapter two, I ended up writing half of this chapter all in that same night. It was weird, I had never written so much in one night for months. Haha! Thanks for reading and enjoy! ~**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters in this story, minus the own characters. I also don't own rights to the song lyrics.**

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* * *

Previously; _"Three months." Boomer said suddenly._

_Bubbles slowed her pace as a confused expression took over her face. "Excuse me?"_

_"Come on," The blue-clad boy said. He turned his face to look at Bubbles. "We're counterparts. I..know you. You want to know how long my brothers and I have been in Ashville. Well, it's been three months."_

_"Oh." Before she could comprehend what she was doing, Bubbles sped up so that she was almost walking right beside him. Her curiosity was once again getting the better of her and she couldn't stop herself from trying to get the answers she wanted anymore. "Then..if you don't mind me asking, why were you sent here in the first place?"_

_"We didn't have a choice," Boomer continued to walk ahead of Bubbles. He took a longing breath as he recalled the day that he knew he was going to be going to Ashville Academy. "It's Butch, he has these anger issues. Sometimes he just can't control how livid he gets. One little thing will set him off. And one day, someone got on the wrong side of Butch's temper. Brick and I tried to break up the fight and ended up getting involved ourselves. The other guy came out of it a lot worse than we did," His face dropped instantly. "Considering that we didn't have any real guardians, they sent us here."_

_Bubbles' brows furrowed. She looked on and processed everything that she had just heard. One answer down, yet it only left her with so many more questions; What happened to the other guy? Is Butch's anger still a threat to people around him? Where was it that they were sent here from? Bubbles debated asking each and every question. But she stopped herself before she could. Boomer had already told her way more than she should know, and they didn't have time to go into everything right now._

_Stopping herself, Bubbles watched as Boomer did the same. She looked at him and blinked._

_"Why are you telling me all of this?"_

_Boomer looked down at his shoes. "I don't have any reason to keep anything from you," Instead of waiting for Bubbles to respond, Boomer nodded towards the door that was closest to them. "We're here."_

_Without another word he wandered into the classroom, leaving Bubbles to stand there, even more confused than she had been to begin with._

XoXoXoXoXoXoXo

_When I was younger, I asked my father,_  
_"Why are we so human?"_  
_Now that I'm older,_  
_I think I figured it out._  
_We're just doing what we can._

_- Liz Lawrence, When I Was Younger_

(Bubbles)

_Thursday, November 12th, 2009._

_Aiming her Nikon digital camera to the sky, Bubbles took a picture of the white dove-esque birds flying above her home. She continuously took pictures, barely waiting to allow the perfect scene, and she was smiling. She was spinning in her back yard, her blue boots stomping the thin blades of grass underneath her. The birds were all she could focus on and her whole world in that moment. They were just a filled canvas waiting to be seen._

_The short blonde could hear the back-door open and close but she couldn't pay attention. She had to keep taking pictures before the birds left. As she clicked and clicked she heard someone come to stand beside her, and she took a second of her attention to see who it was._

_John Utonium. Her father and creator and her everything._

_He wore the customary white lab jacket and black slacks that he was always seen wearing. When Bubbles looked up at the tall man, he smiled at her, and that one smile just brought so much joy out of her. John had barely seen Bubbles since her birthday a week before, mainly because she had spent all of her time with her new camera. It was absolute passion and she couldn't part from it._

_"Bubbles," John placed his hand on Bubbles' shoulder. "You haven't put that camera down since I have it to you."_

_Her face lit up with a stunning, youthful grin, Bubbles shrugged her shoulders. "I like taking pictures."_

_"You have a real talent. You've managed to find something that you love just as much as being a hero," John couldn't tear the smile from his face. "Whatever made you made you want to take pictures?" His voice laced with curiosity and interest._

_Bubbles looked up at the sky. Her light blue eyes twinkled at the sight of the birds and the clouds, just begging to be photographed. She turned her attention back to her father. He was hanging on her every word._

_"I'm capturing a moment that no one else will ever be able to see, unless they see the picture. The moment is gone forever but it still exists in this camera." Bubbles said thoughtfully._

_John was beaming uncontrollably. "You are very wise for such a young girl, Bubbles."_

_"I'm not so young anymore."_

_Nodding, John leaned down so that he could be at eye-level with Bubbles. His eyes showed complete pride and wonder._

_"That's right. And I cannot wait to see you grow up, Bubbles."_

XoXoXo

Tuesday, February 5th, 2013. 7am. - Present Time.

It was as if she was falling inside of a dream, that caused Bubbles to jerk up in bed. Her hand shot up to her face as she wiped the thick beads of sweat covering her forehead. The room was dark and Bubbles couldn't see anything. Panic built up in her chest and she looked around. Looking to her right, she saw bright auburn hair, and she heard the sound of light snoring. Bubbles sighed a sigh of relief. She was still in Ashville. Bubbles tried to catch her breath, which as of then was fast and rapid and painful.

When she thought of John's face, her heart broke all over again. And she couldn't stop it either. She couldn't stop seeing him in her subconscious or hearing his voice in her mind. He was dead but he was never really..gone.

"The dream again." Bubbles muttered. She ran a hand through her blonde hair and took a longing breath.

She reached over towards the cabinet beside her bed and grabbed her phone. The blinding light that arrived when she turned it on was enough to make her close her eyes and flinch. Slowly, her eyes rolled open again and she checked the time. It was only six in the morning. She still had two hours until her first class of the day. Bubbles let out a sigh as she put her phone back down. She looked up at the ceiling and wondered if she should try to get back to sleep.

Only then she would run the risk of dreaming. Bubbles once loved to dream. She always had peaceful dreams that left her with a smile on her face as she woke up. However, since the death of her father, Bubbles had been plagued with the exact same dream. It was recurring and it wouldn't stop or change. It was always the same memory each time. And with each dream, Bubbles found herself going slightly insane. Sometimes she was too scared to re-live the memory so she would avoid sleep as long as she could. It wasn't smart of her to do but it was all she could do to hold on to her sanity.

Bubbles knew that sleep was impossible. She couldn't go back to relive the same memory over and over anymore. She slid out of her sheets and stepped lightly towards the wardrobe, hoping that she wouldn't wake Blossom up from her peaceful sleep - the thought alone made Bubbles grow envious. She hated that her sisters weren't suffering the same constant memories like she was.

She opened the wardrobe and slid her coat hangers around to find something to wear. Her eyes were closing more by each passing second. Bubbles, for once, didn't have the energy to sit and debate what outfit to wear. She reached in and pulled out a random short-sleeved shirt and a pair of blue jeans. Then she grabbed a pair of white flat shoes, not bothering to check if she could make heels work, she was too tired to bother.

When she had collected her clothes, she noticed a speck of black sitting on the boxes at the bottom of the wardrobe. Bubbles didn't wear black. She focused her sight on the object and when she realised what it was she swallowed the bile in her throat.

Her camera.

Bubbles picked it up with her free hand. Her eyes skimmed the device and so many memories flashed before her eyes. Memories of her twelfth birthday, when John gifted the camera to her. Memories of her school trip to London where she took pictures of buildings. Memories of her recurring dream.

She closed the doors of the closet, leaving the camera in her hands. She put the clothes on in a rush before grabbing the dark blue hoodie at the foot of her bed. She had been waiting for an excuse to wear it since she had bought it three weeks before - when she went on her crazy shopping spree, a way to forget about her grieving for just a second - and she slipped it on. This seemed like a good day to wear it, considering her clothing options weren't great, she may as well hide her plain shirt.

Once she was fully dressed, camera in hand, Bubbles rushed out of the room.

She walked past Buttercup and Daisey's room and down the hall. As she passed doors, she could see that some people were already getting ready for classes - mostly the perfect looking girls with better clothes than her. Some doors were open, allowing Bubbles to see inside. She noticed a girl with strawberry blonde hair, green eyes, a beautiful smile, sitting on her bed with a handsome brown-eyed boy. They were eating breakfast together and laughing, obviously they were a couple judging by the looks they were giving each other. Bubbles just wished that they would have some common sense to close the door. Boys weren't allowed in girl's rooms. Even Bubbles knew that and she just came to the school. Idiots.

Bubbles headed down the stairs and out of the second building. She needed some fresh air, ached for it even. The dreams were driving her insane. She was four recurring memories away from a straight-jacket. Bubbles couldn't breathe. All of the air surrounding her felt thick. The sky seemed to be spinning. The clouds were blacker than usual. Bubbles hated this. It wasn't her fault that John died, she had grieved normally and she was going to be grieving for the rest of her life - so what did she do to deserve this? Bubbles didn't know.

Her eyes traveled high to the sky. Ashville was no Townsville. There was no sun or blue or beauty, just dank and dark. Just black clouds and rain. But Bubbles saw the splendor in everything. While it wasn't ideal, Ashville was gorgeous in its own way. It was one of the largest towns in Kansas, and highly populated with rich successors, which meant that there was plenty of boutiques and high-class restraints. It was the definition of wonder, the type of place you could only read about in novels, yet it was all real.

Bubbles turned on her digital camera and held it before her eyes. The sky was clearing, almost in preparation, but she snapped a picture before she lost sight of the clouds. And believe it or not, the picture that Bubbles feasted her eyes upon was magnificent, be it from her talent or from Ashville's unknown beauty.

She almost smiled. Almost.

* * *

**Bubbles Utonium's POV**

I took a quick look at my phone. A quarter to eight in the morning, only fifteen minutes until I had to be ready for class. I was already dressed, so that was a plus. I was currently sat on my bed, a compact mirror in one hand, and my concealer brush in the other. I tried desperately to rid the bags underneath my eyes. They was unpleasant, and apparently stubborn too, because no matter how much make-up I used, they still shone proudly.

It was bad enough that I looked half-dead but now my eyes looked dull and gross. Brilliant. I swatted at my face with the brush, squishing the white powdery liquid concealer under my eyes again. Nothing. The make-up just seemed to cover the bags and then vanish within a second. When even make-up couldn't save me, I knew that I had a problem.

"You look fine." Blossom's voice erupted my panicked thoughts.

Turning to look at her, I watched as Blossom sat on her own bed. She was taming her waist-long hair with a hair brush. Her hair was always perfect, just like her face and her everything. That's not the envy talking. Blossom really was the definition of perfection. Well, I thought so anyway. And so did, like, everyone else that she's ever met, except for herself, of course. She brushed her hair so delicately, running her fingers through the soft waves of deep auburn strands.

She looked so beautiful today. Seriously, head-banging, mouth-watering beautiful.

I don't know if it was her hair or her clothes but either way it was stunning. She wore this amazing pink sweatshirt that Robin had got her for her sixteenth birthday. It had this school-style fashion with a white collar peeking out from the high neck-line. Also, it was cropped to end just near where her belly button was. She looked so sophisticated in it, I was seriously jealous. She also had on this black high-waisted skirt on so that the cropped nature of her jumper wasn't at all revealing - because you know, she's classy like that.

And the black tights she wore made her legs look like absolute heaven. She was so tall and you know, amazingly tall. Okay, so I was jealous of Blossom. But who wouldn't be? She was even wearing those annoying, clunky, black, amish-looking shoes that I always made fun of and she was pulling them off with ease. How could anyone not be envious of that?

Finally breaking my envious stare, I rolled my eyes. "I don't look fine. I look terrible, okay? Even make-up can't come to my rescue today."

As I looked myself in the mirror - taking in my tired face - I wondered if the dreams would ever stop. I once believed that they would, weeks ago, and yet no dice. It was like I was being punished. I didn't want this, I didn't need the constant agonizing reminder that my father was gone forever. And while my sisters got to grieve in silence, in their own way, I was forced to get these nightmares over and over. It was a miracle that I hadn't had a mental breakdown yet.

Blossom stopped brushing her hair and turned her full attention to me. "Bubbles, you always look beautiful. A little sleep deprivation isn't going to change that."

Darn her niceness.

"Will you _please_ just admit that I look like a monster." I whined, watching as Blossom's perfect eyes rolled.

"Stop being dramatic."

"I am not!" I whined. So maybe I was being a small, tiny, unseeable amount of dramatic, but I did look like a monster. A bag-eyed, bad-shirt wearing monster. "I look bad. Just admit it."

Blossom smiled warmly at me. "We'll just have to agree to disagree, Bubbles. Now stop attacking your face with that concealer and get prepared. We have to leave soon."

My eyes rolled again. Oh god, crows feet. It was only a matter of time. "Fine, fine. Just let me walk around all day looking like a zombie. It's all cool."

Just as Blossom was ready to give me another speech, a new voice entered the room.

"Delivery for my roommate's fashion-forward sister!"

Blossom and I turned to look at the door in unison. There stood Daisey, bearing gifts. In one hand was a big, white mug, and in the other was something wrapped in a napkin. She must have just come up from the dinning area. As she walked inside, her spotless white skirt sashyed along with her. Today her hair was down rather than up, all held to her right side with a daisy hair clip - figures.

"What's this?" I asked and eyed the Australian curiously.

Daisey moved towards us with a bounce in her step and a friendly smile on her face. "I heard you walking around outside of your room at six in the freakin' morning. So I just went down to the dinning hall and got you a coffee. I thought you could use it. Here," She leaned down towards me and handed me the steaming cup of coffee. "You're welcome."

Blossom's eyes shot towards me. "You were awake at six in the morning?"

"Uh," I chewed on my bottom lip. I had been so good at coming up with excuses the other day yet today my mind just hit an absolute blank. "I was just..there was like..I wasn't tired." So I sounded like an idiot. Check.

"Did you have the dream again?"

Oh here we go.

As a silence passed, Blossom stared at me like a hawk, waiting for her answer. I didn't want to tell Blossom about my dream. I mean, she would just worry and then she would bring up the 'Let's take Bubbles to see a psychiatrist' subject all over again. If I wasn't going to see a shrink in Townsville, there's no way I was going to do it here in Ashville. Lord knows what the shrinks in Kansas would be like.

"Dream?" Daisey placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow. "Do you have nightmares?"

"No," I laughed robotically, hoping that I could change the topic. "I haven't had nightmares in, wow, a while. Oh, Daisey, is that a Lipsy skirt?"

"Yes! Isn't it gorgeous?" Daisey spun herself around to accent her skirt.

I looked over at Blossom and she frowned at me. I knew that the conversation wasn't over but at least we weren't going to talk about it then. That gave me time to come up with a plausible excuse for why I was rummaging around the school at six in the morning. I couldn't exactly say that I wanted to get up early to find the perfect outfit - I mean I was in a shirt, a hoodie and a pair of jeans. Blossom would never believe that it took an hour to chose that.

I smiled and nodded at Daisey. She looked very happy with her skirt. It did feel nice to have a fellow fashion-lover to talk to. Blossom wasn't bothered by designer labels or anything relatively interesting, Buttercup hated any clothes that looked at all nice, and my best friend Robin never paid much attention to anything trendy, mainly because she couldn't afford anything with a high price tag attached. Daisey was like a breath of fresh fashion air.

"Hurry and drink that, Bubbly, we have to leave in exactly eight minutes!" Daisey said - more like ordered - and I cringed at the nickname. Did she have to give everyone nicknames?

My eyes traveled down to the mug in my hands. I didn't usually drink coffee. I didn't mind the taste. With enough sugar, coffee was sweet and awesome, but it wasn't my cup of tea - no pun intended. Nevertheless, I tipped the cup to my mouth and started to drink. I was so tired that I would have done just about anything to feel more alert. I was glad that the coffee had cooled down by the time Daisey had brought it, otherwise I would have severely injured my tongue when I drank it all in one go.

When I was done, I put the cup on the cabinet by my bed. Daisey was immediately joining my side and sticking what looked like a hot pretzel in my face. Just looking at the pastry made my stomach do jumps.

"I also got you this, because you know, breakfast is the most important meal of the day and all!" She grinned at me. I couldn't not smile back. She was so like Robin. They both had that chipper attitude. Only I had a feeling that Daisey was only being so forward because up until my sisters and I had shown up she was so alone.

"I'm not a fan of pretzels," I declined politely. "For future reference, I like cherries. And I'm a vegetarian."

Daisey raised her eyebrow. "You don't eat animals?"

"Nope."

"So you don't eat chicken or like, bacon?"

I shook my head. "No food with a face."

"So you're basically saying that you don't eat anything good then."

"That's basically what I'm saying." I replied with a laugh.

There had been a lot of people that had told me 'I didn't know what I was missing' when it came to my eating preferences. Well, I knew exactly what I was missing - eating sweet, innocent little animals. The less meat I ate, the more for the animal-eating-lovers, therefore less animals to be turned into burgers. I liked that way of thinking. Robin once tried to become a vegetarian. The second that her eyes laid on a double bacon cheeseburger at school lunch time she had failed. I wasn't all that surprised, Robin would marry Mayor McCheese if she could.

Daisey frowned at me before stuffing the pretzel in her mouth and chewing. "You Utonium's are all so weird."

I smiled. "You've got that right."

XoXoXoXoXo

8 a.m.

I made my way into my first class of the day, French. With my hand I shielded my eyes from the view of anyone - unwilling to show how dead I looked - and I almost tripped over Buttercup's feet at least four times on the way in. She eventually linked my arm with hers and dragged me inside. On one side of us was Daisey and Blossom, who were discussing Buttercup's strange sleeping habits - Buttercup was not pleased by that, and on the other side was Chase who had joined us on the way out of our rooms.

My hand moved when Buttercup untangled her arm from mine and I was forced to look out at the class. Luckily most of the students were preoccupied chatting or doodling in their text books to notice me. I watched as Blossom and Buttercup took a seat beside each other at one of the tables. I quickly made my way to sit beside Daisey so that I didn't have to sit beside a stranger that would gawk at me. And Chase sat beside this beautiful blonde girl wearing the latest Versace. Oh, be still my beating heart.

I turned to look at my left and found two Jojo brothers. There was a pattern coming along here - they were in almost all of our classes so far. I mean, the timetable was weird because you weren't with the same group of second years with each subject, it was totally switched up. That was just more chance of Jojo-encounters every day. I was starting to think that my luck had gone from bad to evil in just a week.

I don't know why I was so upset that it was Brick and Butch. A small part of me felt disappointed that Boomer wasn't in this class today. There was only one logical explanation - I was crazy. One hundred percent bonkers.

Mrs Devereaux, the teacher, stood up from her desk and smoothed out her thin, red, long-sleeve ponte dress. She looked at us all with hard, calculating blue eyes, and even her face looked strict. Daisey had warned my sisters and I about this teacher. Her exact words being 'she gives out detention like she gives out scowls." Buttercup wasn't intimidated, but I wasn't surprised about that. No teacher had ever been able to intimidate Buttercup. However I was terrified. Mrs Devereaux looked scary. If there was one thing that I didn't like, it was being singled out in class. I didn't do well with being the centre of attention. Or embarrassment for that matter.

"Good morning, class," Mrs Devereaux - or Delia as her teacher plaque suggested - said thinly as she addressed the class. "Today we're going to be learning more French vocabulary. We'll be starting off with the topic of 'favourites'," She began to pace back and forth in front of us, her heels clicking loudly. "Everyone has a favourite artist, a favourite colour, food, and so on. It shouldn't take long to learn these things in French, if everyone pays attention."

Now I was nervous. I knew a little French. Like, enough to fill at least one page of my text book. I had learned French in my last high school, and I always paid attention. I just had this problem about not being able to remember a lot of it. I mean, my brain was mostly; Photography. Fashion. Art. Music. And then the rest? Well there just wasn't a lot of room for anything anymore. Over the three years of trying to be normal after years of being a butt-kicking crime fighter, I took in all of these subjects and soaked it all in. But when it came to anything else my brain just couldn't remember much of it.

I guess that makes me stupid; so be it. I'm stupid. Sign me up for a life of working at a fast food restaurant.

When Mrs Devereaux started marching towards us, I panicked. I really didn't want her to ask me anything. She made a turn for another table and I swear my heart skipped a beat. I turned to look at who she had decided to pick on.

Oh, this was going to be hilarious-

"Quel est votre livre préféré vous?"

There was a long silence as Mrs Devereaux's victim - Butch Jojo - stared up at her with a look of utter and complete confusion on his face. He looked just like Buttercup did when our old Math teacher in Townsville asked her what the square route of 6 was. Boy, that was funny.

Butch narrowed his eyes in thought. "Uh..Oui?"

Beside him, Brick's eyes rolled. "She asked what your favourite book is."

"Book?" Boy, did Butch look stupid.

A couple of other students laughed as Butch sat there, gaping like a fish out of water. I had to hold back my own laugh - I didn't want to draw attention to myself. That didn't stop Buttercup and Daisey, however, they both burst out laughing like it was the best thing they had ever witnessed. It was no surprise to anyone that Butch didn't know a lick of French. He didn't seem like the 'paying attention in class' type.

Mrs Devereaux let out a sigh of exasperation. She turned her gaze towards Brick instead.

"Brick Jojo, can you perhaps answer the question?"

"Tous le jours." Brick answered immediately.

I blinked. Okay, I knew that he was smart but that was a darn fast answer. Even Blossom would have had to take a second to collect her information in her head before it reached her mouth. My eyes narrowed. Maybe he did have superpowers. Or that's just the lack of sleep talking and he's just really smart and quick on his feet.

Mrs Devereaux offered a smile - for the first time since the class had started. "Très bon. Je vous remercie."

As she walked away, I could feel Daisey leaning over me to get a good look at Brick. She leaned on her elbows, her chin on her hands, and flashed him her 10% award winning and 90% cheeky smile.

"Yes, very good, Captain Genius!" She began to clap sarcastically.

Brick scowled. "Don't be jealous because I'm smarter than you, McCoy."

"Ouch," Daisey put a hand to hear heart and pouted. "I'm so upset that my brain isn't the same size as my ego like yours."

I covered my eyes with my hand again. Why did she have to bring attention to us when I look like I just rolled out of a grave? I peaked out of my fingers just in time to see Brick turn away in a mood. I'll give it to Daisey; she sure knows how to annoy the Jojo brothers. I knew I liked her for a reason.

Turning my attention back to the front, I removed my hand. I made sure to remain quiet for the rest of class. By the time we were half-way in I realised that I had yawned nine times. And I only knew that because Daisey had poked at my arm and told me. I was so close to falling asleep that I had to keep pinching myself. I just wished that by next period, something miraculous would happen so that I didn't have to go to class.

But then again, when did my luck ever do something nice?

XoXoXoXo

8:50 a.m.

Once French was finally over it was time for the second class of the day. I checked my timetable on the way to the hall - the timetable that I had tried to memorize the other night. I failed miserably. My next lesson was Art. That made me smile. While I don't spend a lot of time actually drawing myself, I did enjoy to look at other people's works of art. My dad always told me that I had a nack for seeing beauty in things that most people couldn't. He was seriously right on that one.

I remembered that each time I had seen Boomer outside of classes, he had been drawing on that sketch pad of his. And he was amazing, I definitely remembered that. A love of art; It was just yet another thing that we had in common. I wasn't even sure if it was the 'counterpart' bond thing anymore. Maybe we just had so much in common that it seemed unnatural.

Either way, it freaked me out.

A couple of people pushed past me on the way to class. Sometimes I wished that I was more like Buttercup. If someone pushed her she would turn around and scream at them. Unfortunately I wasn't that bold. Plus I didn't really want to bring any attention to myself.

I looked around desperately for Daisey or Chase. It was embarrassing enough that I had to go around asking people how to get to class, but I didn't want to show up late as well. I don't do well being the centre of attention. And if it wasn't bad enough that I couldn't find my way, there was huge bags under my eyes from my lack of sleep that even make-up couldn't cure. I looked terrible, my eyes wouldn't stay open for very long and I was pretty sure that my shirt was inside-out. None of this would have been happening if I hadn't had that recurring dream again. I thought that moving away from Townsville would make them stop but apparently not. My bad luck at it's finest.

Just when I had given up all hope, I saw Boomer walking my way. I never thought that I'd be so happy to see Boomer Jojo, that's for sure. I rushed over to him and held out my hands in front of me. Boomer stopped instantly and looked down at me in confusion. Darn his height. I didn't have time to care about how idiotic I must have looked, though, I had to find out where Daisey was. I knew for a fact that Boomer didn't like Chase - judging by the looks he shot him when Chase and I came into his class - but I just hoped that he was on good terms with Daisey.

"Bubbles?" He raised his eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

"Please tell me that you know where Daisey is." I said in desperate voice. On any other occasion I would never act like this around, well, anyone, but this was serious. I had to save myself the embarrassment of being late, looking like this.

"McCoy? I haven't seen here since the other day. Why?"

I sighed deeply. "I'm going to be late for Art and I can't remember where it is."

"I have Gym next but I'll take you to Art."

For a minute I just stared at him. This would literally be the second time in two days that I would have to take help from Boomer Jojo. I cursed my bad luck and terrible memory. It seemed like I could never catch a break anymore. First the dream and now this. I didn't want to have to lean on Boomer for help but it would save me the embarrassment of walking into class late, having all eyes on me, when I look an absolute mess. Desperate times call for desperate measures - as Blossom would always say.

I crossed my arms and gave Boomer what I hoped was a tough look. I probably didn't look very threatening though considering I was so short that I had to look up to see him, and there was also the fact that I was wearing an inside-out shirt.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" I asked loudly. Luckily we were now alone in the hall so no one would gawk at me for raising my voice.

Boomer shrugged as though he was unsure himself. "I was new here once too. I know how confusing this school can be."

"No, that's what you do for a random new student," I pressed on, my voice only getting louder. My face fell in confusion. "I'm not some stranger to you, Boomer. Why are you being nice to _me_ of all people? You're supposed to hate me."

"I don't hate you," Boomer said immediately. I searched his eyes for some form of emotion to tell me what was going through his mind. I came up blank. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking. I guess there's something we don't have in common after all. "The past means nothing to me. We're not heros and villains anymore, so to me, you are sort of a stranger. I didn't get to know you when we kids, I just..did whatever I wanted, and getting to know you wasn't one of those things."

"And you're saying it is now?" I asked quietly.

Boomer opened his mouth so speak but before he could the hall fell into complete darkness. I looked around in alert but I couldn't see a thing. The lights had gone totally out. I turned back to Boomer and all I could make out was his dark, honest blue eyes. I could feel the tension when our eyes met. As much as I wanted to know what he was going to respond, I had to pay attention to the fact that I was standing in absolute dark.

"Must be a power outage. There was one last month, it only lasted for a half hour," Boomer said to me. It was weird, hearing his voice yet not seeing his face. I waited for him to speak again since I had no idea what to say. "Do you have a phone?" He asked.

"Oh, yeah, I have a phone."

I reached into the pocket of my dark blue jeans and pulled out my phone, hoping that the battery hadn't died. For once I was in luck as I clicked the screen on and a light escaped from it. I held up my phone and shined the light onto Boomer, finally able to see his face again. He smiled nervously at me and I tried so hard not to find it cute. Boomer Jojo was many things, cute was not supposed to be one of them.

"Let's get to class."

As Boomer passed me, I reached out and grabbed his arm. He looked just as shocked as I did that I was touching him. And boy, did it feel weird.

"Wait," I said automatically. "We have different classes. What happens when I get to class and you won't have a light anymore?"

Boomer stopped in his tracks. He turned around to look at me fully and he scrunched his face as the light hit him. He was silent for a moment, probably trying to come up with a solution, before waving his arm. "I'll figure it out. We should go, you're going to be late."

He didn't give me time to argue, he just stared walking again. I was still in shock of the fact that Boomer was being so nice to me that I forgot to move. Eventually once I started to lose sight of Boomer I started walking towards him again. As soon as I caught up with him, we were almost near the classes and with some luck I would make it on time. Of course, my luck tended to be bad, so I wasn't expecting to get there before the bell. I walked side-by-side with Boomer again - for the second time, might I add - and the awkwardness seemed to tone down a little. That was until I heard a sound and the next thing I knew, Boomer was on the ground.

I heard him groan from down on the floor and I rushed to see if he was alright. I bend down beside him and reached out to grab his arm before I retracting my own. One arm-touch was enough for today.

"Are you okay?"

I flashed the light in Boomer's face. "I'll be fine," He looked down at his feet to see what he had tripped over and I caught him scowl, which looked so unnatural on him. "Seriously? Who leaves their bag in the middle of the hall?"

Boomer rose back up to his feet and let out another groan, only this time it was a groan of pain rather than annoyance. I hated the sound so much. Not because I cared about Boomer or anything like that, only because the sound of people being in pain unsettled me. I flashed the light at him again and our eyes locked. For a moment neither of us said anything, we just stared at each other.

It reminded me of the first time I had seen him in Ashville, when we were in the common room and our eyes met across the crowded room. It sounds so cliché but it was such a nice moment for me. I was mesmerized by his eyes so much that I couldn't look away. And then I found out that he was Boomer Jojo. And all hope of getting to know the boy with the blue eyes was crushed.

"I think I might have sprained my ankle on the ground." Boomer said thoughtfully as he moved his leg around, earning another hiss of ache that made my heart sink in my chest.

Without thinking of how wrong it was or what Blossom might say, I took Boomer's arm and placed it around my shoulders.

"Come on, I'll take you to the nurse's office," I felt him tighten his arm around my shoulders as he started to limp and I closed my eyes. The last time his arm had been near me was when we were younger and we were fighting our hearts out. My stomach started to hurt as I remembered the times that we had fought. I had no idea how it came to this. I was helping him, and his arm was around me, and I wasn't even scared. "The, um, the nurse's office is in the third building, right?"

Boomer didn't speak. He just nodded.

I started to walk as Boomer began to limp towards the door. I flinched every time he hissed in pain. There used to be a time where I inflicted the hisses, and I always hated it inside. How did hurting Boomer make me any better than him? Put aside the good versus evil and me and Boomer were on the same level ground. He hurt me and I hurt him back.

If I finally had the chance to help him then I had to do it. I had to let go of our past for an hour and do something human. And I didn't look back even once.

XoXoXoXoXoXo

**Regular POV**

_5 minutes earlier.._

It had taken getting half way to her next class - Gym - until Buttercup realised that she didn't have the change of clothes that she needed for class. She remembered laying the clothes out on her bed to take to French and then to Gym, although her absent mind had managed to forget all about it until she was almost at the Gym hall. She marched back to the second building as fast as she could to grab them before she was late.

Once she made her way into the building, she headed for the stairs. When her hands clasped around the banister she narrowed her eyes and swayed to the left. She quickly jumped down from the first step and walked towards the back of the building.

There was no time for stairs - she had to take the elevator.

Buttercup still wondered why people bothered taking the stairs when there was a perfectly good elevator behind them. She headed forward and went to press the button to open the elevator, only she was a little late. Someone else's hand came into her view and pressed the small, silver button. Buttercup pursed her lips when she saw the hand. She already had a feeling of who it was. Considering her case of darned luck this week, it was bound to be him.

And it was.

"Forget something in your room too, huh?" Butch Jojo came into view. He smirked at the annoyance showing all over Buttercup's face. She didn't have time to deal with him right now. Taking a calming breath, Buttercup put her hands on her hips and smirked back at him.

"Yeah. I forgot the machete I planned on using to kill you."

Butch didn't even seem phased. "You don't frighten me, Utonium."

"Ditto."

Buttercup and Butch stared at each other with equal looks of boldness until the elevator door opening finally took their attention from each other. Butch made a move to walk in, but Buttercup pushed past him and went in before. She turned around to look at him and smiled smugly. Butch rolled his eyes, trying to push aside his anger for Buttercup's childishness, and walked inside.

He scanned the buttons for number 2 and pressed it. As the elevator started to move up, neither of them spoke or looked at each other. Both knew that there wasn't enough time to get into an argument, plus this really wasn't the place for it. Just when they were nearly at their stop, the lights went out and the small space turned to complete darkness.

"Huh?" Buttercup muttered to herself as she looked around the dark.

The lights eventually came back on, three seconds later, but when they did the elevator jerked and stopped completely. Buttercup lost her balance thanks to the sudden shift and felt herself falling. She prepared herself for a collision with the floor but it never came.

Butch caught her right before she could hit the ground. Buttercup was still for a moment, she was too stunned to move, and then the reality came crashing and she yanked away from his grip. She glared at Butch with nothing but absolute hate in her eyes.

"What the_ hell_ just happened?"

"Uh..well you were about to fall so I-"

"-With the elevator, you idiot!" Buttercup cut him off.

Butch held back a laugh. "Oh, right," He smiled in amusement. Buttercup rolled her eyes and waited for him to answer her original question. "It's probably just a blackout or something."

"A blackout?" Buttercup's eyes widened. She looked around the elevator and began to panic. "Are you saying that we're stuck in here!?"

Responding with a nod, Butch grinned boyishly. "Looks like you're going to have to learn how to play nice with me after all." His voice was teasing and it made Buttercup's head spin.

"We need to find a way out of here," Buttercup replied bluntly. "Now."

A smirk lit up Butch's face. "There's no way out. We have to wait until the power comes back on."

Buttercup's face contorted in panic.

"Damn."

* * *

The doors to the first building opened as Bubbles and Boomer came through. They squinted their eyes as the light of the outside hit their eyes. Bubbles had never been so happy to see light. She effortlessly helped Boomer as he limped over to the third building. They were so close to the nurse's office. Boomer eased knowing that soon he could get his leg checked out and he could go up to his room to sleep the agony off. Well, he would sleep until Butch would come crashing in to annoy him.

Bubbles and Boomer made it to the door of the third building in under two minutes. Bubbles got her phone ready to flash again once they got inside the building. When she clicked the phone she heard it beep. She hoped, prayed, that it was just a text or something. Only her bad luck decided to grace her again as the phone shut off from no battery.

"My phone just died." Bubbles frowned as she looked at Boomer.

"Oh, god."

Boomer closed his eyes and sighed. His leg was throbbing and he couldn't walk anymore, let alone limp around the third building - the biggest of three - to find the nurse's office. That wasn't going to happen. Boomer found himself seriously needing to get off of his foot and he leaned against the wall - or what he thought was the wall. Instead, the leaned on the door, and it opened.

Both blondes came crashing through the door and landed on the ground. When Bubbles opened her eyes she found herself staring into Boomer's. She had landed right on top of him. Bubbles felt herself blush at the closeness as she held herself up with her hands.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" She rambled in embarrassment.

"No, it was my fault." Boomer insisted.

Bubbles instantly shot up. When she was back on her feet, she could barely look at Boomer. She decided to herself that this had to be one of the most unluckiest days of her life - The dream. The inside-out shirt. Having to rely on Boomer to help her. The lights going out. Boomer fracturing his ankle. And now, this. Bubbles was not amused.

Reaching out, Bubbles held her hand out for Boomer to take. His hand clutched hers tightly and he felt electricity, as did she. They stared at each other for a moment, unsure of why holding hands felt so..strangely awesome. Boomer quickly tore his hand back the second that he was standing again. He tried to bypass the awkward tension by looking around. The light from opening the door wouldn't be enough to lead them to the office. It seemed hopeless without Bubbles' phone.

"I think we're just going to have to sit here until the lights come back on."

Boomer sighed to himself. He realised that having Bubbles hold him up for the remainder of the darkness would be awkward so he decided to sit down. He leaned his back on the wall and sunk to the ground, carefully watching his leg as he did so. He could hear Bubbles doing the same on the opposite wall, and even though he couldn't see her face, he could see her eyes. The pools of light blue were so bright that he could make them out perfectly.

When they were both seated, a muteness passed over. Boomer looked Bubbles right in the eyes, deciding to make the most out of a bad situation.

"Well, as long as we're stuck here, you might as well tell me why you and your sisters got sent here."

Bubbles swallowed, and the sound was so huge in the silence. "It's not important."

"I told you why my brothers and I are here. It's only fair." Boomer's voice sounded curious, and almost concerned. Bubbles knew exactly how it felt to be so close to getting an answer to a question and not getting it. So, throwing away yet another one of Blossom's rules, she answered.

"My dad.." Bubbles sighed and considered not going on. She looked up at Boomer's dark blue eyes, almost willing her to continue. She swallowed again. Bubbles hugged her legs against her chest and decided to get it over with. "He died just over a month ago. It was a house fire. Blossom, Buttercup and I lost everything. We had no where to live and no parent to look after us anymore."

Even in the dark, Bubbles could practically feel the frown on Boomer's face following her statement.

"I'm sorry I asked." Boomer said apologetically.

"No, it's okay," She dismissed, a small smile on her face. She wasn't sure why telling Boomer made her feel so comfortable. Although she realised that maybe it wasn't telling Boomer in particular - she just really wanted to tell someone. "Don't be sorry." She said in a quiet voice.

Boomer sat up slightly, trying to cross his legs in a casual manner, although he found it hard when every time pressure was added onto said leg he felt an unbearable ache. He ended up sitting there with one leg crossed over the other. Luckily there was no light for Bubbles to see what a complete idiot he looked.

"If it's okay to ask, why did you stop being superheros and decide to be normal?"

"It wasn't really by choice," Bubbles replied. She crossed her own legs and stared into Boomer's eyes, the only things that she could actually see. "As you know, most of the criminals left Townsville, got sent away, or became reformed. There wasn't a town to protect anymore, you know? So our powers kind of went away, it was really random, they just disappeared as though they had never been there. And I guess we finally got our wish to become regular humans like our friends. But being human isn't as easy as I thought it would be."

Boomer nodded in understanding. "Yeah. I thought that it would be easy to be human too, but it's becoming harder and harder each day. I don't like lying to people."

"Is that why you've got this whole 'loner' thing going on?"

Chuckling, Boomer couldn't fight his grin. "Yes."

The two blondes smiled at each other, even though they knew that neither could tell that the other was smiling, they just enjoyed the moment. And Bubbles found herself forgetting every single one of Blossom's rules. She was having too much fun just living in the moment, and getting to know her enemy.

* * *

Butch watched in amusement from the corner of the elevator as Buttercup continuously kicked the door. She didn't even look angry, not in Butch's perspective, she just looked anxious to get out as fast as possible. Her feet slammed against the door with so much power that it reminded Butch of when she was once a hero. She always held so much anger and it made her powerful, beautiful. Butch admired it about her.

The seconds turned to minutes as Buttercup kicked and stomped all about the door. She wasn't even sure what she was trying to achieve. She just hoped that maybe someone would hear the noises of her feet contacting the silver door and they would come running to let them out. As absurd as it seemed, Buttercup didn't give up or stop for a breath, there just kept kicking.

Her attention was finally brought back to Butch when she heard him laughing like there was no tomorrow. She spun around, rage flooding her bright green eyes, and she hissed.

"What are you laughing at!?"

Butch looked up at her from his seated position in the corner. "Is being in my company really so bad that you need to bang on the elevator door?" He asked amused.

Realising how fruitless her attempts were, Buttercup sighed and turned around to face him. She slid down the door and took a seat on the floor, opposite from Butch, and she crossed her legs.

"Yeah, it is, but that's not why I'm so anxious to get out of here." She muttered without thinking.

Butch's thin eyebrow raised. "Why then?"

"It doesn't matter." She replied bluntly.

"We're stuck in here until the power goes back on. You may as well tell me. You've got nothing better to do."

Shooting him a bittersweet smile, Buttercup narrowed her eyes. "Ignoring you is something better to do."

The legendary Jojo smirk crossed Butch's lips, making Buttercup roll her eyes in annoyance. She always did hate that smirk of his. Buttercup watched him, seeing him as her only entertainment, and she took in everything about him. There was barely a trace of the Butch that she used to know - besides the tough green eyes, the spiky black hair and the twitching. He looked mature, even though he didn't act it. His voice was deeper. His body was taller and more toned. He was smarter. He played football. And most importantly - he was the only brother of three that hadn't expressed his desire to be human. Maybe he didn't want what his brothers wanted. Maybe he was still evil.

Buttercup imagined what she would do if she did find out that Butch was still a villain. She would say 'I told you so' to both of her sisters, and then she would literally kick Butch as far away from Ashville as possible. Buttercup wasn't even sure why she wanted to protect this town. This wasn't Townsville. She didn't want Kansas to grow on her, she didn't want to one day miss this place when she finally got to leave. She just hoped that it was the small part of hero still left inside her that made her want to protect Ashville so badly.

"So, I just have to ask," Butch drawled. He grinned at Buttercup, already excited for their back-and-forth that he had missed. "What are the Utonium's doing in Kansas anyway? Stopped playing hero's?"

Buttercup scoffed. She bit back an argument from the 'playing' comment. This was not the time or place to let Butch rile her up. "Can we just_ not_ talk?"

Butch pouted sarcastically and shrugged before looking away from her livid eyes.

A minute passed in total muteness, and the air was getting thick. Buttercup was so close to getting up and starting to kick the door again. She just wanted out. With every passing second Buttercup's breathing gradually got faster and harder. There was a building ache in her stomach that she couldn't fight. Panic was settling in and she knew what was about to happen.

She closed her eyes and tried desperately to calm herself down, with no avail. Eventually Butch noticed Buttercup's over-all panic-stricken demeanor. Her breathing was rough and her face was turning white. Butch had seen this before. He leaned forward a little and tried to catch Buttercup's eyes, but they were still closed tightly.

"Butters? Are you okay?" His voice almost held concern, only making Buttercup feel like she might throw up even more.

"I'm stuck in an elevator with the bane of my existence. No, I'm not okay." She hissed.

"Seriously, you look like you're about to pass out. What's wrong?"

Buttercup's eyes shot open. She felt her lips curve into a frown. "Why do you care!?" She lashed out.

"I don't," Butch said nonchalantly. "I'm just curious."

A sigh escaped from Buttercup's lips and she hesitated. She looked away from Butch's eyes - there was no way she was going to look at him while saying this. "I'm claustrophobic. Small spaces sort of freak me out, okay?"

Butch's eyes widened. He could already feel his lips curving into a smile. "Hold on a second. The great Buttercup Utonium is scared of confined spaces?"

"I'm not _scared_ of anything!" Buttercup's head snapped towards Butch, her eyes burning with rage at the implication. "I just don't like being in small spaces. You being here isn't making it any better!"

Chuckling, Butch shook his head. "You are so arrogant."

"I'm arrogant!? You're one to talk."

His eyebrow raised. "I might be a little arrogant but you are _so_ much worse. Just because you're Buttercup Utonium doesn't mean that you can act like a superior bitc-"

Butch stopped talking abruptly as he noticed Buttercup hyperventilating, her green eyes blinking uncontrollably so fast that she couldn't even see him anymore. Butch wasn't sure what to do. He tried to reach out and grab her arm but Buttercup quickly took hold of his hoodie and held it tightly with her fist, as if she was trying to find a way to keep control of herself and what was going on around her. Her fist tightened more and more until it physically hurt.

"Utonium, what's happening?" Butch asked urgently, drawing closer to her.

"I'm having.." She tried to speak but her breathing was too rapid. She sucked in a breath and pushed the words out. "..P-Panic attack."

Eyes as wide as dinner plates and heart racing, Butch bent down slightly to be at her eye-level. "It's okay, just try to calm down."

Buttercup's eyes rolled open as she sent a death glare his way and growled.

"Hold your breath," Butch practically yelled above Buttercup's loud breathing. "Holding your breath stops panic attacks. Do it!"

Everything went quiet as Buttercup sealed her lips and held her breath in. She was seeing spots everywhere, she couldn't even see Butch anymore, she could just hear his voice and feel his sleeve as she curled her fist tighter around it. She began to count in her head. 1. 2. 3. 4. She opened her mouth and shook her head violently.

"I can't..I need to get out of here right now!" She bit out, closing her eyes again.

"Listen to me, you insufferable girl!" Butch's voice laced with authority. "Everything is going to be fine. The power is going to come back on soon, and we'll get out of here, and you'll be back to your regular, annoying self."

Buttercup shook her head and said nothing. Her breathing was slowing down but it wasn't enough. Butch could feel her hand slipping away from his sleeve as if she was losing absolute control. He shook his head, he wasn't giving up that easily.

"You're going to be okay."

Her breathing slowed more.

"You're going to be okay." He repeated.

Her breathing stopped.

"Buttercup.."

Her eyes opened.

The elevator suddenly made a shrill noise and jerked forward again. Butch fell backwards, landing on his backside at the other end of the lift. Just then the elevator finally started to move again. And Buttercup finally started to breathe. Buttercup and Butch stared at each other as they felt the elevator moving up towards the second floor. There was still shock clear in Buttercup's eyes at how Butch had managed to bring her back from her panic attack. It wasn't possible.

Buttercup rose to her feet instantly. Her eyes hardened on Butch as he did the same.

"How did you know what to do?" She asked.

"Boomer used to have panic attacks because of a low blood pressure issue when he was fifteen. I guess I just learned how to stop them over time."

"Well..thank you." Buttercup said reluctantly - taking the words back instantly.

The door opened and in a flash Buttercup was gone.

* * *

**Bubbles Utonium's POV**

I couldn't have been happier when the lights came back on.

For a while I was sure we would have had to spend the whole hour sitting in the dark, just waiting for the power to come back on. Boomer and I had talked - and I mean, we really talked. We spoke about how we felt about Ashville Academy, we reminisced over Townsville, we had a laugh over our siblings. It wasn't until the lights came back on that I realised how stupid I was.

Blossom had told me not to talk to Boomer. She wasn't just being overly cautious, either. There was a good chance that these boys were still villains that came here for a reason. And I had sat and spoken to one of them like we were friends. Blossom would be so upset if she knew that I had let Boomer take me to class, carried him to get help for his ankle, and everything else.

I had made myself forget all about Blossom's rules and the danger because, I guess, I wanted to talk to him. I wanted to talk to someone about these things. Sure, I didn't want people here to know about my creation or my past, but I hated not being able to talk about it. With Boomer, I could be myself, and I didn't have to hide. It felt so wonderful that I wasn't thinking clearly.

Trying to stop thinking about it, I led Boomer towards the nurse's office. He gave me directions considering I had never been before. It took us a good three minutes to get there - it would have taken less if Boomer wasn't so slow at limping - and by the time we did, I was sure that class would be over soon. I missed a whole class on my second day. That's definitely not good.

When we got to the office, I looked around for the nurse. She walked in from the back room seconds later. I noticed that the room was covered in un-lit scented candles. These blackouts must have happened often if the nurse had a supply of candles handy. I looked at her up and down. There was a name-tag pinned to her white jacket that read, "Sandra Sharpe."

"Hello." She addressed in a stunning British accent.

Mrs Sharpe's thin lips curved into a bright smile as she looked at Boomer. She was absolutely beautiful. From the first glance, you wouldn't be able to tell that she was an in-school nurse. She had a statuesque build that most would consider seriously model-worthy. Her ageless heart-shaped face had a motherly glow about it, and her skin resembled soft alabaster. Even her hazel eyes and arrow-stright blonde hair looked only fit for royalty.

"Hey, Sandra." Boomer said from beside me. I raised my eyebrow at him. Just how much did Boomer come here?

"Boomer," Mrs Sharpe nodded in greeting. "I haven't seen you in here since Butch accidentally pushed you off the bleachers."

I blinked. Butch did what?

Boomer's eyes rolled as he limped over to the examination table. "He used the word 'accidentally' did he?"

Sandra laughed musically. "What's wrong with your leg?"

As Boomer hopped onto the table, I decided to answer for him. I took a step forward and smiled at Mrs Sharpe. She seemed friendly, and she seemed to be fond of the Jojo brothers. I already knew that Buttercup wouldn't like her. She might even dislike her more than Holiday Sinclair.

"Boomer was showing me to Art when the lights went out. He tripped over a bag in the hallway and sprained his ankle when he hit the ground." I cast a look at Boomer and watched as he poked at his ankle with a pencil. I tried not to smile but it was no use.

"And you're just getting here now?" Mrs Sharpe raised a brow. "That must have been quite a journey." She joked with a friendly grin on her face.

"A little help here," Boomer suddenly spoke. Mrs Sharpe and I looked at him to find that he had stopped jabbing his leg with the pencil and was now staring at us. "My leg is killing me."

Sandra walked over to take a look at his leg while I remained stood by the door. I couldn't get my head around Boomer today. All of the other times I had seen him, he really was loner-ish. He was uncomfortable speaking to just about anyone. But today he had spoken so freely around me. He was like the old Boomer again; cracking jokes and making an idiot out of himself.

I didn't understand how he went from being a silent loner to being..Boomer, when he was around me. And what's even weirder is that I noticed how normally I acted around him as well. Maybe it was because we can connect over knowing each other's secret. No one else but my sisters and his brothers know about how we were created. Maybe Boomer felt comfortable around me. Or maybe I was just hoping that there was something special about me.

Sandra's voice tore me from my thoughts.

"This should heal within a couple of days," She said as she looked away from his ankle and to his eyes. "Just try to keep your foot elevated when sleeping and make sure to get some excercise. I recommend swimming. I'll go get you an ice pack and something for the pain." She smiled at Boomer before turning around and heading towards the conjoined room at the back.

When she was gone, Boomer turned to look at me. His eyes held gratitude.

"Thanks for helping me out today."

I shrugged like it was no big deal. "Well, I wasn't going to just leave you there. I'm not Buttercup." I answered with a small smile.

A chuckle escaped Boomer's lips. "You should get to your next class. The bell is going to ring soon."

Nodding, I gave Boomer a final smile. I turned around and began walking towards the door. Although when I got to the door I found that I couldn't walk through it. Of all that was said today, there was still one thing that I really needed to say to him. I spun back around to face him and my smile was replaced by a frown.

"I know that my sisters said that I shouldn't believe that you have changed, but I like to think for myself. I know that you're not the same person you were back then," His eyes softened and they looked so handsome. I had to look away. "We can't be friends, but that doesn't mean that I don't trust you."

And then I left. And I didn't look back, not even once.

* * *

**~ Wow, I got that up quick! This story has me so excited, I'm so into it, that I don't want to stop writing it! I guess when you've been planning a story for over five months you get this excited about finally sharing it. Okay, now I'm just going on and on, thanks for reading! ~**

**Ps: In case anyone was having problem with pronunciation, Mrs Devereaux's last name is pronounced (Dever-Oh)**

**Next Chapter - (Blossom's Chapter) - Blossom begins to re-think things after an encounter with Brick. Meanwhile, Buttercup and Daisey get themselves into trouble with Blossom when they decide to have a little fun involving water-soakers.**

_**Don't forget to drop a review. It will only take a second (:**_

**- Allie**


	4. Flaws Upon Your Sleeve

**Ashville Academy**

**~ Hi angels! Thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoy chapter number four! ~**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters in this story, minus the own characters. I also don't own rights to the song lyrics.**

**Here's some replies to reviews!**

**Grace Of Flame - Thanks a ton, angel. Very sweet (:**

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**AN: This chapter is a lot shorter than the others so I apologize for that, but I assure you that the next one will be longer! Enjoy, guys!**

* * *

Previously; _"You know, over the years of us being enemies I learned a lot about you, Brick. I learned that you were like me in every single aspect to be seen. Which is why I know that like myself you are a fantastic liar." Blossom replied bluntly._

_"I didn't say that you had to believe me," Brick's voice raised slightly. "But you're right. I am like you in every aspect. So why don't you take a moment to think about everything that I just said." His tone softened. "I wanted freedom from the life that I was given, are you going to sit there and tell me that not for even a second you wished that you could be normal too? When you were out saving Townsville, knowing that no one but yourself could get the job done, you didn't feel at all trapped, wishing that you could be seen as a regular human from the eyes of your peers?"_

_"My situation is different." Blossom muttered as she looked down at the table._

_"How can it be any different? We both wanted out, Blossom."_

_"Yes, I wanted out, okay? I wanted this," She waved her arm around the room for affect. "But that does not make what you said true. You might sound sincere but you were raised to deceive. I saved lives, day after day, I deserve this chance to be seen as normal, but all you ever did was cause the messes that my sisters and I had to pick up. You have been evil since the day that you were born, and right now I can't see anything but evil."_

_"I thought you might understand. Of all people, I never thought that you would so closed minded," Brick rose from his seat and shook his head at Blossom. He turned on his heel, heading for the door, before turning around one last time. His red eyes fell onto the book sitting in front of her. "Good luck with the assignment, Utonium."_

XoXoXoXo

_You have always worn your flaws upon your sleeve,_  
_And I have always buried them deep beneath the ground._  
_Dig them up; let's finish what we've started,_  
_Dig them up, so nothing's left unturned._

_- Bastille, Flaws_

Wednesday, February 6th, 2013. 7:02 a.m.

(Blossom)

**Blossom Utonium's POV**

My eyes checked the clock for the second time in six minutes. It had just passed seven in the morning and my head was doing turns. I was sat on my bed, my work notepad sitting on my raised knees, a pen in hand as I continued writing my English assignment. I was half-way through - again. I kept starting over because it didn't look right. It didn't feel good enough each time. Even as I skimmed over what I had wrote this time I could still find fault with so much. I didn't realise how hard it would be to write a book review for one of my favourite novels. That seemed easy in my mind.

In some ways it seems like it would be easier if I was getting Buttercup's help or even her opinion. But no, she was dancing. Yes, dancing. It was seven in the morning and she was blasting Bastille from the plug-in speakers in her iPod and jumping around the room like an idiot. I was surprised that no one had complained about the noise but I guess it didn't matter, all of the second years would have been up by now, and if they weren't, they had to be because class stared in under an hour.

With all of the music I was finding it hard to concentrate. My head was all over the place, pounding with the warning of an upcoming headache. I turned to Buttercup, my eyes lit in annoyance, and yelled at her over the music.

"Buttercup, would you please turn that music down and do something productive rather than dancing around?" My voice was laced with irritation, just enough to get my point across.

Rolling her expressive eyes, Buttercup did as she was told. She turned the music down enough for me to be able to hear my own thoughts.

"Yes, boss." I narrowed my gaze at her and she smiled at me. "Lighten up, sis."

I suppressed a sigh. "I can't 'lighten up'. Im stressed. I have to get this project done - on my own, might I add. And then there is the matter of the three Jojo brothers that won't leave us alone."

Buttercup pursed her lips and nodded. "Yeah, I know. Being stuck in an elevator with Butch was totally not amusing."

My eyes grew wide and I practically leaped up from my lying position. "You were stuck in an elevator with Butch?"

"Oh, I guess I forgot to mention that."

"You forgot-" I sighed and pushed aside my frustration at her nonchalantness. "Are you okay? Did you have a panic attack?"

She pouted her lips and was silent for a moment. I could feel my worry building up in my chest. Buttercup's panic attacks always terrified me. She started having them when she was thirteen. It wasn't long after our powers left. I guess once we lost our power, our bodies weakened and began to function more like normal human's bodies did. Buttercup's dislike for small spaces turned from a mild dislike to a burning, devouring fear.

Whenever she was subjected to confined places her panic set in and she no longer had control of her body. It was painful to watch. Buttercup had always been the strong one, the one with no fear, and to see her like that scared Bubbles and I more than anything we had ever seen before.

After a good fourteen seconds of silence, Buttercup shook her head.

"No. I didn't."

I couldn't tell if she was lying or not. Something was telling me that she was; the part of me that knew my sister better than I knew myself. But if she was lying, that meant that she didn't want to talk about it. I had to respect that instead of questioning her to ease my own worry.

"Alright. Now can you please just turn that music off so that I can get on with this project?"

Buttercup sighed but again did as she was told. "Fine."

She strolled over towards Bubbles' bed and picked up her iPod before shutting it off. Once the music was gone I was free to concentrate completely on my assignment. I looked down at it and re-read the first paragraph again. It wasn't bad. It wasn't perfect. That had to be changed.

I placed my pen to the paper and continued from where I left off. Just when I thought that I could maybe get this paragraph done before class, Buttercup jumped onto the bed, making it shift from the sudden weight. I looked over my paper and gave Buttercup the scariest look I could muster. She didn't seem phased at all.

"So," Buttercup drawled casually. "How is the project going anyway?"

"It's not perfect, yet. I just need to work on it some more." I said before turning my attention back to the notepad. I could practically feel Buttercup doing her famous 'chill out' smile.

"Stop trying to damn hard. Not everything needs to be perfect."

"You clearly don't know me as well as you think you do."

"Yes, I do. I know you better than anyone - that includes even Bubbles. And I know that you'll work yourself silly until it's what you consider perfect. Chill, sis."

I looked at her again and resisted the urge to bang my head against the wall. "I'll chill out when this is finished."

Buttercup rolled her eyes and slid off of the bed without another word. She went straight for her room - probably to get dressed for class - without even bothering to take her iPod. With my distraction gone I looked back at my paper and tried to focus. Although it was hard to focus with Buttercup's words running through my mind.

Maybe I did need to chill out. Just not today.

XoXoXoXo

8 a.m.

When I walked into Social Studies I found that I was in for a surprise. I was happy to find out that Social Studies was a class that I got to share with both of my sisters - and both Daisey and Chase as well. We would all be together for the same class on first period every Wednesday. It almost seemed too good to be true. Which of course proved that it was. When my sisters, my friends and I got into class, I spotted not one, not two, but all three Jojo brothers. Every. Single. One.

It was as if someone had cursed my sisters and I with terrible luck and now we were forced to spend every waking minute with the boys that basically ruined our lives on a daily basis. When I first saw them I wanted answers, understandably, they had disappeared into thin air after all, but now I didn't know I wanted. If they were found to be truly reformed then how would the next two years play out? How could I live a couple doors down from Brick Jojo for that long?

I was _definitely_ cursed.

Buttercup hooked her arm around mine and pulled me forward. It was then that I realised I had been standing there, staring at the three brothers, for longer than I had expected. Buttercup brought me to a table that had three other tables between it and Brick's table and we sat down. I felt grateful that she cared enough to get the table that was farthest away from them. She gave me an encouraging nudge on the shoulder as we sat down. I smiled at her and suddenly forgot why I had been so frustrated with her an hour before.

I watched as Bubbles took a seat near the back of the class with Daisey and Chase. She didn't seem very affected by their presence, and I caught the way that she and Boomer exchanged a glance as she walked by. I just hoped that she knew what she was doing. Bubbles always was one to follow her gut instincts rather than her logical mind - and her instincts were trying to tell her that Boomer didn't lie about being reformed.

Those types of feelings were dangerous for everyone involved.

My thoughts were diverted when the teacher made her presence known. Daisey had told me that this was Mrs Khali and that she was the nicest teacher of them all. She looked the part, too. Her amber coloured eyes - a sweet mix of brown and orange - looked so kind. Her hair was a light brown and it was seriously long, almost as long as my waist length hair. Her's reached the base of her stomach in arrow straight, soft waves. She was quite short, maybe the same height as Daisey if she crouched slightly.

She didn't dress like a teacher, or at least she didn't dress like the other teachers here. Mr Doyle wore suits and Mrs Devereaux wore ponte dresses, while Mrs Khali went for something more practical. She had on this white tank top with long sleeves, a black cropped cardigan surrounding it, skin-tight black jeans and comfortable flat shoes. She dressed like any other person you would see walking the streets of Ashville.

Mrs Khali took a step forward and smiled brightly. "Hello, class. We're going to be starting a new topic today, now that we're on the subject of debate. Today we will be talking about the death penalty. Has anyone here heard of the death penalty? Can someone explain it?"

She took a look at Butch and her smile widened. I remember Chase telling me that while Mrs Khali was a sweetheart, she loved to pick on Butch. I had a feeling that Buttercup was going to like Social Studies.

Butch quickly jerked in his seat and pulled Brick - who was sad beside him - by the shoulders to shield himself from Mrs Khali's view. I suppressed a laugh at the look on Brick's face when Butch pulled him in as a shield. Luckily for Butch, Mrs Khali turned her attention to a random student instead.

"Lisabeth," She addressed a tanned blonde sitting near the front. "Do you have an answer?"

The girl known as Lisabeth nodded. "The death penalty is when a criminal is sentenced to death rather than a prison sentence."

I had known the answer. There was just something compelling my mind not to say anything. I guess a part of me didn't want to be pegged as the 'brainiac' of the class in my first week, which was strange because I didn't mind that back in my old school. But if I think about it, it was plausible that this class already had a 'brainiac' as such. Brick. He is the only person I know that could level my intelligence.

They leveled everything about me and my sisters actually. I looked over at them. It was impossible to look at Brick the same way since our talk in the library. I didn't believe him, at least I tried desperately not to, but I began to understand why Bubbles had the same sliver of doubt that I now had. Brick's story sounded so..genuine. It was plausible, and it wasn't just his sincere tone, there was this look in his eyes. The look that my sisters and I wore whenever we told someone in Townsville of our hope to be normal. You couldn't fake that look. Unless Brick and Boomer were just really good actors. I wasn't sure what to think anymore. My head was jumbled, my mind wanted to believe on thing when in fact it was torn with another. I had never felt this indecisive before.

My eyes caught sight of Brick and Butch. They were sat beside each other, while Boomer was sat on the table right in front of theirs, alone. Just looking at Butch made me think of Buttercup. It wasn't his appearance but how he carried himself. One leg dangling over the other, hands behind his head, a bored to death look on his face. Everything about him screamed my sister. It was the same for Boomer as well. He was sitting up relatively straight although he had one of his legs raised so that he could draw on the top of his blue converse shoes. His eyes were so focused on the felt pen drawing on his shoes and it reminded me of how Bubbles looks when she works on her photography.

And then I looked at Brick.

He was sitting up, his eyes on the board, concentrated and collected. He understood what the teacher was saying. He was interested. He wasn't like any other. Just like me. I think out of all of the counterpart similarities that mine and Brick's was the most obvious. Like his brothers, it was the way he carried himself, but so much more. I didn't understand how two people could be similar yet on such different paths. During the year of their creation, my sisters and I tried to work out what the 'counterpart' bond meant. I mean, you couldn't create someone that looked and acted like you without there being a bond between you both. I still didn't know what the bond meant. But there had to be something there to explore. I just didn't think that it was possible to do.

In one month, everything we ever thought about them could change. Buttercup came up with a solution to our 'Jojo' problem. We suspected that the brothers came here for a reason - to do something evil, to steal, to destroy, to do what they were born to do. But it's not as if they would stick around for over a month to do it. We knew the brothers well. They were a strictly 'get in, get out' type of villain. They weren't patient enough to invest in one crime for that long. I was amazed with Buttercup's plan, and also how fairly easy it seemed; For the next month we would keep a close eye on the Jojo brothers. If we caught them up to something, we would take them out. They would be out of our lives for good and Ashville would be safe. And then we would go back to pretending that we were normal. And if they proved themselves to be reformed, we would stay out of their way and let them live the regular life that they came here for.

A small part of me hoped that it wouldn't come to the first option. Maybe I just didn't want to find out that I had a small hint of belief for a boy who lied to me. But I would deal with that if it came to it.

"Thank you, Lisabeth." Mrs Khali spoke up, pulling my attention away from the Jojo brothers. She stood back in front of her desk and looked out at us all. "Many people have mixed views on the subject," Her eyes scanned the room and landed on me. I sighed, shredding my plan of not speaking up in class this week. "Miss Blossom Utonium. What do you think of the death penalty?"

I pursed my lips. With this subject I could go on all night, but apparently my answer would have to be short and sweet like Lisabeth's was. "Well, I personally don't agree with it. I think it's an absurd form of punishment-"

I stopped talking abruptly when I heard a snort of derision coming from Brick - and he wasn't sly about it either. I turned to look at him and he looked back at me. My skin was burning with an unknown emotion. He held my gaze until we were brought back to reality by the teacher.

"Brick, do you have a different view?" Mrs Khali smiled at him. Teacher's pet.

"Yes," He looked at me again. I felt like I was about to burst. He was about to argue with me in front of an audience? Things certainly had changed. "If these criminals weren't given the death penalty, they would either get out one day and do something illegal again, or they would be subject to a life in prison, which is a fate worse than death. I'd say that putting them out of their misery is the right choice."

I scoffed at him. "So let's say that someone kills another person, and in return they are killed themselves? They wouldn't actually _know _or experience that they were paying for their crime, they would just be dead. How does that make any sense?"

In that moment I had forgotten all about the class watching and listening to us. It was as if the whole world was absent and it was just Brick and I, looking at each other and arguing.

"Well," He drawled and smiled. "It would make people less likely to murder anyone, wouldn't it?"

As I narrowed my eyes, Mrs Khali spoke. "It sounds like we have a debate going on," She returned to the top of the class and addressed us all. "Okay class, get your books out. Write down your views on the death penalty in great detail. I expect your work to be at least a page long, and completed by the end of the hour. Do you understand this Butch?"

Looking up for the first time in the class, Butch's face hardened. "Why do you always pick on me, Mrs K?"

"Just get started please, Butch," Mrs Khali ordered. "Surely you don't want another detention on top of the other three that you have this week?"

Butch instantly shut his mouth and began to do his work. Mrs Khali smiled in victory before walking over to her desk and taking a seat. The class grew quiet as everyone began to write in their text books. I was about to do the same when I felt myself compelled to look over to Brick, and our eyes met again.

I gave him a cold stare before turning away again. I was not about to let Brick Jojo get in my head, not again.

* * *

11 a.m.

**Regular POV**

Pushing past some Barbie-lookalikes, Buttercup wandered into the second building. She made a move for the elevator before freezing in her step. Buttercup eyed the elevator with a narrow gaze and remembered how she had spent a good half hour in that place with Butch Jojo - who had to save her from suffocating to death. She shook her head. The elevator was no longer her friend. Buttercup took the stairs instead, her hand sliding up the golden railing, making a slight squeaking sound. She rushed up as fast as her legs would take her.

After three hours of classes, all Buttercup wanted to do was take a breather, and maybe find something fun to do. She debated going for a swim in the pool. However she realised that a lot of people did that when they were bored. She prefered to swim alone, in complete solitude. Apart from swimming, the computers - which she could only use once each week, for only one hour, if it wasn't already bad enough - reading, playing football or pool, there wasn't much else that allowed entertainment. She would have asked Daisey to have an all-night match of Zoom Racers 3, if Holiday Sinclair had not found out that Daisey bribed a staff member to get the X-Box and taken it away. Another reason for Buttercup to hate that woman.

When Buttercup got into her room, she noticed Daisey already there. The Australian was sat on her bed with her legs crossed and a familiar looking laptop sitting in front of her. Of course, it was Chase Royale's laptop.

"Did you ask if you could borrow that?" Buttercup asked as she closed the door.

Daisey looked up and a smile set across her lips. "Chase adores me. He won't mind."

Raising her eyebrow, Buttercup gave Daisey a look. She crossed the threshold and strolled over to her own bed. Her legs were about ready to give out from all the walking. She flopped down onto the mattress and lay on her back, her short black hair sprawled across her face.

"Really? Because Rich Boy seems to hate you."

"We have a _complicated_ friendship," Daisey said as she closed the laptop down. She turned to look at Buttercup. "Anyway, he won't notice. He's playing football on the court. I'll just sneak in and put it back while he's in the shower."

Buttercup rolled her eyes but smiled. She placed both of her hands behind her head and looked up at the ceiling. Her boredom was sinking in and she was starting to miss Townsville. She always found something interesting to do whenever she was with her good friend, Mitch.

She still remembered when they became friends. It was at the start of the school year and Buttercup thought that it would be fun to key the principle of Townsville High School's car. Buttercup was sly. She never thought that she would be caught, but she was, key in hand, caught red-handed. She was sent to detention and the only other person there that day was Mitch. She hadn't spent much time trying to get to know him before. They barely knew each other's names. It was then that they striked up a real conversation. Mitch told her about how he landed himself in detention - by writing 'Homework is for losers' on his Math homework sheet. Buttercup found it so hilariously brilliant that she declared that they be friends, and partners in crime.

Her heart broke thinking of him. Buttercup wondered what he was doing at that moment - he was probably sitting in detention, in their usual spot, not so slyly texting Robin from under the table. She missed her partner in crime. She missed the fun and excitement that they caused.

Trying to swallow her nostalgia, Buttercup turned to look at Daisey. "What do you do for fun around here? I've been here for four days and I'm already going insane."

"Get used to it. I hate to break it to you but there's nothing fun in this school."

A sigh escaped Buttercup's pursed lips. "Great. I'll just add that to my list of reasons to die."

Daisey chuckled. "Well, we don't have to stay in here all the time. Remember, we're allowed to go outside on Fridays and weekends."

"I can't wait that long, Daisey," Buttercup moaned. She sat up on her bed, her legs dangling from the side. She looked at the brunette as a pout played at her lips. "I need something to do now."

Daisey looked thoughtful for a moment before she grinned. Her blue eyes lit in excitement. "I have an idea."

Seeing the look on her face, Buttercup raised a brow. "Why do I have a feeling that we're about to get ourselves into trouble?"

"Is there something wrong with that?"

Buttercup smirked. "Of course not," She rubbed her palms at the thought of doing something troublesome. It had felt like so long since she had been mischievous. "What do you have in mind, McCoy?"

A grin spread across Daisey's lips.

"How good is your aim?"

* * *

11:15 a.m.

**Blossom Utonium's POV**

I had escaped from my room and came outside to catch some of the sun. That's right - sun. It was the first time that it hadn't rained since I came to Ashville. And while the sun wasn't as bright and beautiful as Townsville, and the air wasn't hot, I still didn't want to miss out. The fresh air made me think better. So I had climbed up the bleachers looking over-head the football field and found myself a spot near the middle.

For the past two and a half minutes I had been staring down at my half-written paper, unsure of what to write. I had came to a block, were my mind just wasn't coming up with words anymore. I had started again..again. Each time I had written something a little better but I found myself always unable to finish it perfectly. It annoyed me. I was so close to pulling my hair out from the stress.

Every now and then I would look over towards the field and watch as Chase and Butch played football together. I found myself envying Butch Jojo, of all people. He was running around with his friend, laughing and kicking the ball around. He looked so normal and so human. And he probably felt it too. How could Butch act so normal when he wasn't? Didn't it bother him that Chase knew nothing of his past and who he really is? I guess Butch just has no morals. And I hated that. I hated that he and his brothers could just act and not care. I could never do that.

I sighed to myself and turned back to my English paper. I gripped the pen in my hand and tried desperately to write something, anything. I didn't understand why it was so hard. I was usually good at this type of thing.

When I finally felt wisdom coming my way, I could hear someone walking up the bleachers. It was typical, I can never get any alone time to concentrate with all of these students everywhere. I turned my head to see who was distracting my precious work time and my mood went even lower. Of course it was Brick. He had this tendency to always be around at the worst possible times, which is strange because when we were kids, that was usually Boomer's trait, not Brick's.

His hands were stuffed in the pockets of his midnight blue jeans and his eyes were on mine as he walked up the bleachers and closer to me. My hand tightened around my pencil. The end was sharp enough to threaten him with if he decided to stick around. I was in no mood to deal with Brick, and I wasn't particularly comfortable talking to him after that night at the library. He got into my head. Not again.

"What do you want?" I asked in annoyance.

Brick kept a straight face. "Aren't you supposed to be the nice one?"

I'm supposed to be the smart one, actually.

"I'm nice to people that deserve my kindness." I answered instead. With just enough insult in my tone, maybe Brick would take the hint and go do something more productive than talking to me.

A chuckle escaped his lips. "And I don't? I've been _nothing_ but courteous to you for the past four days."

"Being nice to me for four days does not make up for the five years of pain you caused when we were younger." I replied bluntly.

"You have a point there," Brick admitted. I smiled smugly at him before turning back to my assignment. I hoped that he was done and he would leave, but he spoke again, and I don't why my stomach jumped in joy when he did. "But I'm still trying to be civil for the sake of this situation. We're going to be living a couple of doors apart for the next two years. Can't you at least cut me a little slack?"

I looked at him and my face hardened. "I don't owe you anything. Until I believe that you have changed, you're still considered the enemy. And I don't exchange pleasantries with my enemies." I was being harsh now. My words were pure poison and I had never felt this mean before. I don't know why being near Brick changed me so much. Maybe for once I was just acting on my anger.

"I bet I can change your mind."

I rolled my eyes. "What are you going to do? Kill me with kindness?"

Brick's lips broke out in a smile. I caught sight of the way his dimples curved slightly when he smiled and my brain started to do turns. I had always been a sucker for dimples.

"You're almost as smart as me." He chuckled.

"_Almost?_" I bit out the word like poison. "I am so much smarter than y-"

I stopped talking abruptly when I heard someone yelling. Judging by the Australian ring it was definitely Chase. Mine and Brick's gazes followed the source of the yelling and found ourselves looking down at the football field. I could see two figures spraying both Chase and Butch with what looked like plastic water-soaker guns. I heard the holders of the soakers laugh together and I immediately knew who they were.

Brick's eyes squinted. "Is that Daisey?"

My face hardened.

"And Buttercup."

I instantly rose to my feet and walked past Brick. I began to sprint down the bleachers to reach my sister before she did anything more. They had just stopped spraying Butch and Chase with water when I finally got to the field and they just stood there laughing as the two boys shook off their wet clothes. They had stopped yelling but everything looked like it was about to kick off; All because of my sister.

"Oh, I think-" Buttercup struggled to get her words out because of her incessant laughter. She placed her free hand on Daisey's shoulder. "I think I've found my new partner in crime." She bit out before bursting into another round of hysterics.

"I'm game whenever you are, roommate." Daisey replied, trying to hold back her giggling.

I crossed my arms and waited for Buttercup to stop acting so unbelievably immature and notice me. It took another twelve seconds of chuckling until she finally did. When Buttercup spotted me standing in front of her, she raised both of her hands up in defense as if she was a common criminal. My sister. I couldn't believe my eyes. She was still laughing, slyly gazing at Butch as he shook his head in an attempt to get the water droplets from his hair. She couldn't be taken seriously at that moment. She looked like a child caught with hand in the cookie jar. She looked like a child, period.

I suppressed the growl building in my throat. "Buttercup! What on earth are you doing?"

"I got bored." Buttercup shrugged, like it was no big deal. And it infuriated me.

A sigh escaped my lips. I reached out and snatched the water-soaker from her hand and passed it to Daisey, whom was trying not to laugh at the look on Chase's face. She took the soaker from me and I turned back to Buttercup. I could feel my face going red in anger.

"We came here for a fresh start, not to play around with water-soakers!"

Buttercup took a bold step towards me. Her face was contorted in rage, all of her earlier joy disappeared and she looked ready to argue until dawn.

"We came here because we _had_ to, Blossom! So what if I want to have a little fun? A _tiny_ bit of excitement?" She said with her head high like what she had just said justified anything.

"Look, I'm okay with letting you make a fool out of yourself, acting like a five-year old and I'm fine with doing our project all on my own to save you the task, but I will not accept you thinking that you can do whatever you want." I hissed at her and time stood still after I spoke.

Her face dropped instantly. I felt a twinge in my stomach from seeing her expression. I didn't like insulting Buttercup, I hated it in fact, but sometimes these things just had to be said. And I thought that I could trust Buttercup. She stopped herself from attacking Butch twice so that she could avoid this, and then she just turns around and forgets all about behaving properly because she was bored. How was that right?

I couldn't bare to look at the expression on her face anymore so I turned around. I rushed back over to the bleachers and walked back up to where I had been sitting before. When I sat back down and picked up my notepad, I noticed something.

Something was different.

My gaze fixed onto handwriting different from my own. Slightly messier, smaller handwriting. Recognition hit me like a ton of bricks. I had seen this handwriting before when reading Brick and Chase's assignment in English class. Brick had written something at the bottom of the page. I closed my sight in on the words.

"Don't worry. It's perfect." I read aloud.

I blinked. Turning my attention back towards the football field, I noticed that Buttercup and Daisey were gone, and Brick had taken their place. He was chuckling to himself as he watched Butch and Chase complain about my sister and friend. I tried to meet Brick's eyes but he was preoccupied with the boys.

I looked back down at the words that Brick had written. And I couldn't believe my eyes.

XoXoXoXoXo

_13:43 p.m._

Later that day, I knocked on Buttercup's room door. After she had left I had tried to concentrate on finishing our assignment but I couldn't find words. It wasn't because of my shock from Brick's encouraging words, but instead from my own guilt. I couldn't get Buttercup's face out of my mind. That look of sadness and despair that she held - it tore me apart. I had to do something.

Ever since coming to Ashville all Buttercup and I had done was argue and slowly drift apart. We had fought over the Jojo brothers, and now we were about to come to blows over a silly prank. It all seemed so childish. There was no way that I was going to let something as juvenile as this destroy our friendship. I was about to knock again but the door pulled away before I could.

I watched as the door opened and I braced myself for Buttercup's sad face again. Only when the door opened I didn't see the face, instead I saw Daisey, hand on hip and a content grin on her face. She was obviously in a good mood after soaking Chase from head-to-toe.

"Oh, hello Bloss. What brings you here?"

She stepped aside and allowed me to walk past her and inside the room. I strolled in and fidgeted with my fingers, nervous at the thought of seeing Buttercup. I turned to face Daisey and looked around the room.

"Is Buttercup here?"

"Ah. I reckon you want to make amends? She's in the bathroom, should be back any second."

I smiled in appreciation. "Thank you."

Daisey raised one of her thin eyebrows. "If you don't mind, can I ask why you snapped at Buttercup? I mean, it was me that suggested we soak the boys. She was just doing what she does best."

"Exactly," Letting out a sigh, I shrugged my shoulders. "She just..doesn't know how to behave. I can't keep looking over her shoulder to make sure she falls in line."

"Maybe she doesn't need to fall in line, have you ever thought of that? Look, I don't know you very well, but I reckon that you're the type of girl who likes her work in on time and her socks arranged in order."

I raised my eyebrow at her. "What is your point, Daisey?"

"My point is that you're a perfectionist, Blossom. You may be able to fix your assignment until it's sparkling but you can't fix Buttercup," She smiled softly at me. "She isn't going to change who she is, and more importantly, she doesn't have to."

I was silent for a moment as Daisey's words set in. I hated to admit that she had a point. I could have been a little more sympathetic towards Buttercup. While being 'bored' isn't a good reason for her to make a fool out of herself and run the risk of getting thrown out, she was going through this huge change, and she's not used to the fact that she can't do whatever she wants anymore. It's like she has no freedom and I just yelled at her like that was alright.

Turning to Daisey, I nodded. "You might be right."

She smiled at me. "Might? Darling, I may be a little slow, but I'm _always_ right. You'd do well to remember that."

I smiled back at Daisey. I was truly thankful for her keen insight. For once maybe I had over-reacted, okay there was no doubt about it, I had over-reacted. I was preparing to go take a seat on Buttercup's bed to wait for her but before I could, the door opened. It was Buttercup, and she didn't look pleased to see me. Her face hardened as our eyes met from across the room. I frowned at the look in her eyes; hurt, betrayed, sad. It was rare to see Buttercup wearing such emotions.

She stepped in and stood beside Daisey, looking at me in question, wondering what I was doing here. She looked surprised. She must have thought that I was still mad at her, and why wouldn't she? I acted like a crazy person out there.

Daisey spoke up to break the awkward tension. "I should probably go make sure that Chase isn't planning revenge. You two walk," She gestured between us. Daisey walked towards the door and stopped before going through. She turned back to us and grinned. "Oh, and no fighting please. It took me just about a year to clean this room." And then she left, leaving Buttercup and I alone.

I took a step closer to my sister. "Buttercup, I-"

"Don't," She cut me off with a shake of her head. "Okay? Just don't. I get why you said the things that you said. To be honest, I have been acting like a five year old. But I was only having a little harmless fun. Come on, Bloss, soaking Butch Jojo with a water-soaker is something that I'll cherish forever."

I stifled a laugh and nodded. "I'll admit that it was a little humourous. Still, I would appreciate that you at least try to act more mature."

Buttercup's face lit up in a beautiful smile. "Let's make a deal. You start acting more care-free and I'll start acting more grown-up?"

"Deal." I didn't even need to think about it.

"So, can we please talk about Butch's face when I soaked him?"

I chuckled. "Well it wasn't a very nice thing to-" I stopped abruptly as I saw Buttercup's face drop. I sighed and nodded at her. "It was priceless."

Buttercup and I laughed with each other as we reminisced over the looks on Butch and Chase's faces. And as we laughed together, I found myself forgetting all about why I had been so quick to get angry at Buttercup. She was basically my best friend. I decided to stick through with our deal. From now on, I wasn't going to be so up-tight. I was going to laugh and smile and have fun, and I wasn't going to think about the consequences anymore.

It was officially time for a change.

* * *

**~ Wow, it's unbelievable how fast I'm writing these. I think it's because the chapters are shorter than the chapters on my other story, or maybe I'm just way too excited to get into this story. Haha, either way, I'm excited to get started on the next chapter right away. You won't have to wait long, angels. ~**

**Next Chapter - (Boomer's Chapter) Boomer finds himself coming more and more out of his shell as he spends more time with Bubbles. Meanwhile, Buttercup finally takes a stand against Bubbles when she tells her that she believes the Jojo brothers have changed.**

_**Please review! It will only take a couple of seconds (:**_

**- Allie**


	5. What I've Been Chasing

**Ashville Academy**

**~ Hi angels! I hope you like the chapter. Get ready to peek into the mind of a loner, because this is Boomer's chapter. Enjoy! ~**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters in this story, minus the own characters. I also don't own rights to the song lyrics.**

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**_AN: So the chapters are getting pretty small. I have each chapter planned out on documents on my laptop so I know that the next few are going to be quite short but I also know that as they go on, there's more to write, the chapters will be a lot bigger. At least right now I can update a lot quicker xD Please forgive me for the chapter size, angels!_**

* * *

Previously; _"Thanks for helping me out today."_

_I shrugged like it was no big deal. "Well, I wasn't going to just leave you there. I'm not Buttercup." I answered with a small smile._

_A chuckle escaped Boomer's lips. "You should get to your next class. The bell is going to ring soon."_

_Nodding, I gave Boomer a final smile. I turned around and began walking towards the door. Although when I got to the door I found that I couldn't walk through it. Of all that was said today, there was still one thing that I really needed to say to him. I spun back around to face him and my smile was replaced by a frown._

_"I know that my sisters said that I shouldn't believe that you have changed, but I like to think for myself. I know that you're not the same person you were back then," His eyes softened and they looked so handsome. I had to look away. "We can't be friends, but that doesn't mean that I don't trust you."_

_And then I left. And I didn't look back, not even once._

XoXoXoXoXo

_I don't know where I'm at._  
_I'm standing at the back._  
_And I'm tired of waiting,_  
_Waiting here in line, _  
_Hoping that I'll find what I've been chasing._

_- Jason Walker, Down_

Thursday, February 7th, 2013. 7:34.

(Boomer)

**Boomer Jojo's POV**

That morning I was sat in the common room. There wasn't a lot of people hanging around - which was weird. But I wasn't complaining. Less noise, more solitude. I had been sitting on my usual couch since seven, just drawing figures on my sketch pad and thinking to myself. My ankle was still sore, unfortunately. I tried swimming like Mrs Sharpe suggested but if anything that made it worse. I didn't swim much so I was basically just floating about. I kept it elevated, used ice-packs and hovered down pain-killers. It felt better than it had on Tuesday. I could actually walk without the help of someone. Only I wasn't walking so much as I was limping.

When I looked over my drawing, I noticed something. The girl that I had drawn looked suspiciously similar to Bubbles. I hadn't even intended to draw her. I just starting drawing, not knowing where I was leading, and I was left with a picture of a beautiful, long-haired, short build of a girl. My subconscious was really starting to play tricks on me. I didn't want to draw her, she wanted nothing to with me and I her. But for some reason I couldn't stop thinking about her.

That was normal though, wasn't it? She's the absolute basis of my past, and she's here. She moved in and made me remember everything that I had tried to forget. I don't think my brothers understand how wierd it is. Brick is acting as he normally does, like having his counterpart living down the hall from him isn't a day-changing situation. And Butch? He's just glad that he has someone to annoy. I'm still waiting for Buttercup to do something about him. Butch and Buttercup is a dangerous combination. One of them is bound to step the line eventually. And when it comes to how I'm feeling about it, I can't even put it into words. At first I was too shocked to think about it. Now I'm just confused on why having Bubbles around makes me feel so..alive.

"What are you drawing?"

I almost jumped out of my skin when I heard Butch's voice. Turning around, I noticed that he was sitting beside me on the couch, that silly grin on his face. I had been so wrapped up in my thoughts that I had barely heard Butch come in. I pulled the sketch pad away from his sight and sighed.

"I came down here to be alone, Butch. Go annoy someone else."

Butch's grin widened. "But you're so fun to annoy, brother. Come on, what are you drawing?"

"Do you really care?"

His eyes narrowed in thought. "Hm, not really, but I'm bored and Brick is working on that assignment with Chase."

"Butch, I want to be alone."

"You always want to be alone," Butch rolled his eyes. "I don't see why. When you're always alone, you have no one to talk to."

"That's the point."

Without warning, Butch reached over and grabbed the sketch pad from my hands. I growled and tried to grab it but Butch had already seen what was on it. The effort was pointless. I watched as he raised his eyebrows and his eyes filled with amusement.

This wasn't going to be good.

"The chick in this drawing looks _suspiciously_ like Utonium number 3."

I snatched the pad back. "Her name is Bubbles."

Butch gave me that look - you know, the 'What's your point?' look. "I don't care what her name is, Boom. Do you honestly think that you have a chance with a Utonium? All three of them hate us, Butters especially."

Suppressing a groan, I looked away. "They're technically the reason we exist. You could at least learn their names."

A chuckle escaped from Butch's lips. He dropped his amused expression and stood up. "Whatever," He turned to look at me and smiled. "Oh, and if you haven't already realised yet-" He nodded down towards the sketch pad on my lap. "-Loners don't have girlfriends."

And then he left. I looked down at the picture and I could feel my stomach ache at Butch's words. He was wrong. I didn't want a girlfriend, I didn't want Bubbles to be anything to me. I just wanted to know why she was on my mind, twenty-four-seven, and why I felt like this.

I tore the paper from the sketch book and scrunched it into a ball before throwing it into the nearby trashcan. I watched as it went in and I closed my eyes.

No more drawing Bubbles Utonium.

XoXoXoXo

10:12 a.m.

In my last class of the day I had to sit through a full ten minutes of Miss Van Dey talking about the fundamental of perspective. Usually the thought of Art class made me seriously happy. Art was one of the few things that I actually cared about. But I already knew everything that Miss Van Dey was saying. It was hard to enjoy learning something that I already knew about.

My gaze turned the empty seat beside mine. Bubbles wasn't in class yet. A small part of me worried that she was sick or something, the other just ignored it. I didn't know why I felt anything for this girl. Apart from the obvious - her being the reason for my existence, there was no reason for me to care about her. We weren't friends. She told me that she trusted me yet I know that she's still helping her sisters plan a way to find out if my brothers and I are still evil. I don't know why I care about her if she doesn't care about me.

I think it had to do with when she took me to the nurses office. In that moment when we realised that we had to wait for the lights to come back on and we talked about our lives, I felt amazing. For once I didn't feel alone. I could talk to someone about who I used to be, I didn't have to hide anything and neither did she. It was like we had this..connection. Maybe it was just the counterpart bond, but I felt it and I know that she did too.

I tried not to think of Bubbles, but every time that my head went silent, she popped up, unexpected and uninvited. She was haunting my mind ever since she moved in. I thought that I had left everything about Townsville behind when I left but here she was, and she hadn't changed yet she had at the same time. She wasn't a push-over anymore. She thought for herself and she was confident and amazing. Okay, I can't go there.

Tuning back into the teacher, I decided to listen to her speak. It was the only way to rid my mind of Bubbles.

"Perspective in art is an importance. If you see a person standing close, they appear larger than a person of same size standing further away. They seem different sizes, but they are not, and you must learn how to depict perspective when coming across three-dimensional images."

Miss Van Dey went on more about perspective, and I think that I was the only person paying attention. No one else in this school cared about the important things, like art. Bubbles did. I shook my head. No thinking about her, it wasn't allowed. I looked at Miss Van Dey, she was like a visionary. She spoke so passionately about art. I sort of looked up to her in a way, she was for sure my favourite teacher.

She was just as tall as Mr Lomax with silky, long black hair, always - and I mean always - held up in a tight bun above her head. Her eyes were a warm brown, like the colour of coffee. Miss Van Dey usually wore these classy outfits. Like today. She was wearing this vintage blouse, like the one that Bubbles was wearing on her first day here. Nope. Not thinking about her. And she had on a skirt underneath, it was long and had ruffles of sorts, and of course Miss Van Dey would never be seen without a pair of black high-heels on. I think they're called stilettos. That's it, stilettos.

She wasn't just insightful towards art, she could easily be famous with the artwork that she does. But she obviously likes to keep things simple so she decided to work at a boarding school - I have no idea why, I mean what was wrong with a regular high school?

Just then I heard heels clacking along the floor, and it wasn't Miss Van Dey.

Heads turned just in time to see Bubbles walk through the door. She looked..there wasn't even a word. It was the second time that I had seen her in a sundress and I was still so in awe at seeing her in one. Her hair was up today, in a high pony tail, and being able to see her whole face showed zero blemishes, no flaws. She wasn't wearing makeup and she didn't need to. Her blue dress was short, ending at her upper thighs, held up by spaghetti string laces around her shoulders. And she wore heels just like Miss Van Dey's, only Bubbles' were dark blue.

She sauntered in like she was the most confident person in the room.

Miss Van Dey eyed her. "I'll ignore your lateness considering this is your first week here, but please try to arrive promptly."

Bubbles nodded in response. She walked towards the last seat beside my table and sat down beside a brunette girl. I watched as she opened up the small white purse strapped around her shoulder and hunted around for what I assumed was a pencil. Her face grew distressed when she closed the bag, coming up empty handed. Without thinking, I reached into my back pocket and pulled out the pencil that I use for my drawings and I reached over to pass it to her.

She looked at the pencil before looking at me. Her mouth formed the words "Thank you." as she took the pencil. I wanted to smile or mouth back something but instead I nodded and turned back to look at the front.

"Okay, get out your books and turn to page twenty-nine." Miss Van Dey said.

I opened my text book and turned to the page to see the words "The fundamental of perspective." I sighed. This was going to be way too easy. I began to skim the page and I felt Bubbles' eyes on me. I thought back on Tuesday when Bubbles helped me out and I felt my face tighten. Why is it that I had so much in common, a _real_ connection with a girl that I could never be friends with? A girl that I was created to destroy. How can any of that be fair?

It wasn't. And I hated it.

* * *

14:27 p.m.

**Regular POV**

After classes were over for the day, Bubbles stayed in her room instead of going to the in-door pool with Blossom, Daisey and Chase. She wasn't in the mood to sit around and pretend to have fun when she really just wanted to be alone. She had had the dream again. It was even more vivid, more clear, more painful. It was getting worse day by day and it was only going to get even worse with each passing day she spent in Ashville Academy.

She had her camera in her hand and she was flicking through old photos that she had taken of Townsville. The pictures varied from the back garden, the school, the beach, each more beautiful than the last. Bubbles remembered how proud John had been of her work. He hung up her photos all around the house and Bubbles often found him staring at them and smiling. Now those pictures were just burnt crisps along with the rest of her old home.

Bubbles could feel a smile tugging at her lips as she came across a picture of her family. John in the middle, wearing his usual lab coat, one arm around Bubbles and the other around Buttercup. Standing in front of John and grinning beautifully was Blossom. She was so tall, even back then, that she covered most of John. They were such a happy family. Bubbles wondered why it all went so wrong.

Speaking of family, just as Bubbles was looking through more of her group photos, Buttercup Utonium walked through the door.

She was oblivious to Buttercup. Her mind was too wrapped up in the camera and the memories that followed.

Buttercup walked forward and looked at her sister, trying to determine what was keeping Bubbles so oblivious. When she saw the Nikon camera in Bubbles' hands, Buttercup couldn't help but smile. She strolled over and sat at the bottom of Bubbles' bed - finally dragging her attention.

"I remember the day that you got that," Buttercup said and Bubbles looked up, her lips torn between a smile or a frown. "You were so excited."

Nodding, Bubbles looked back down. "I ran right out and took pictures of our back garden."

"You showed your pictures to dad and he said-"

"Your talent is what will make you." Bubbles interrupted. She spoke the words like she had practiced the line over a hundred times.

Buttercup's lips curved into a small frown. "It still doesn't feel right, him not being here."

"He's here," The blonde mumbled. "People don't really die, Buttercup. They're still here. We just can't see them."

"Then why do you look so sad?"

Bubbles finally looked up at her sister again. She sighed, her lips fighting a frown. "I'm just thinking about second chances. I didn't want to come here, but on some level, it feels like a second chance. We're finally at a place where no one knows how we were created and that we're not normal."

Rolling her eyes, Buttercup pursed her lips. "The Rowdyruff boys know."

"But it's not like they'll tell anyone. They want to hide the past as much as we do. And they're not called the Rowdyruff boys anymore."

Buttercup's eyes narrowed dangerously. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Up until then, Bubbles had been totally silent about all things 'Jojo'. When Buttercup and Blossom would secretly spy on them and then report back, Bubbles wouldn't say anything. She would just say that she didn't want to spy on them because she was worried that they would see her. But clearly it was more than that.

"Bubbs, no matter what they say, they never stopped being the Rowdyruff boys," Buttercup said sternly and carefully. She shook her head. "You can't change who you are, not completely. I'm just waiting for one of them to prove it."

"They're in boarding school," Bubbles argued. "They've been here for a while and they haven't done anything to hurt anyone or try to escape. They want to be here because this feels normal. This makes us feel human."

Buttercup's entire face hardened. "Why are you talking like they're one of us? Don't tell me that you..you_ believe_ them? Bubbles, please don't tell me that you've let Boomer freaking Jojo of all people get into your head!"

"I didn't let anyone get into my head!" The blonde's voice rose drastically. "I'm allowed to think for myself, Buttercup. I haven't said anything because I knew that you would react like this but I believe them, okay? I believe what Boomer said. I believe that they have changed."

Shaking her head, Buttercup's face dropped. She felt like she had been stabbed in the back. Bubbles was going against everything that they had discussed. She had told Buttercup that she didn't- couldn't believe them. Buttercup could barely see straight from all of the anger building up inside of her. She shook her head again - more rapidly - and pursed her lips. It was time to take a stand.

"You are so naive." Buttercup bit out.

Bubbles scoffed. "I am not naive! I saw the look in Boomer's eyes when we talked and he's sorry, he is _so_ sorry for the pain that he caused. What kind of people would we be not to forgive him? What kind of people would label them as criminals for the rest of their lives just because they were evil in the past?"

Instantly Buttercup shot up from the bed. She crossed her arms authoritatively like Blossom always did when she was telling her off. Her face still ablaze, Buttercup took a breath and looked down at her sister.

"You can't talk to Boomer again." Her voice almost sounded weak. Almost.

"But-"

"No excuses, Bubbles!" Buttercup cut her off. "You sound like you're brainwashed. I won't let you jump aboard the 'Jojo' fan boat just like that. I'm supposed to protect you, and now I'm protecting you from making one of the _biggest_ errors that you'll ever make," She narrowed her eyes dangerously. "You don't talk to Boomer again."

And just like that, Buttercup was gone. Left to stare at the spot where she once stood, Bubbles' face reddened in rage. She could feel her fists curling against her sheets. She had never felt this livid before, the anger and hate was boiling up and she couldn't control it.

Bubbles watched the door and shook her head. She wasn't about to take orders from her sisters again. She was done with that, for good.

* * *

17:04 p.m.

Later that night, Boomer walked into the common room, ready to listen to music from his iPod and draw on his sketch pad in solitude. When he made his way to his usual couch, he took notice of a familiar short blonde by the pool tables. He gazed at Bubbles from across the room and found himself entranced. She was laughing, and the sound was like music to his ears. Her laugh was so sweet and adorable. Bubbles was with Daisey and Chase, and she was giggling at Daisey's mediocre pool skills. Daisey was trying to beat Chase with so much determination - probably just to see that egotistical smile wipe off of his face.

As Bubbles caught Boomer's eye her laughing slowed to a stop. She took a breath and held the gaze. Boomer tore his sight from her and continued towards the couches. He knew better than to get himself involved with her. It would only lead to so much that he wasn't comfortable with. He could feel Bubbles' eyes follow him as he sat down on his customary seat and placed his drawing pad on his knees. Boomer reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out his pencil.

Ignoring Bubbles' presence in the room, Boomer brought pencil to paper and began to sketch the outline of a skyline. Skyline's were his preference. He had drawn one so amazing a month before that when Miss Van Dey saw it, she hung it up in the second building hall where the staff placed the best drawings from their students. Boomer had three of his artworks hanging there in random order but he never took credit for them - that would mean attention, something that Boomer had never been fond of.

He tensed when he felt someone sitting down beside him. His first instinct was Bubbles. She had come over to sit beside him, to talk to him with that melodic voice of hers, she was going to converse and open up so many doors that Boomer was afraid to look behind, so many opportunities. But alas, as Boomer turned to see who had sat beside him, it wasn't Bubbles. It was his brother.

"I was looking for you." Brick declared as he sat back on the couch, crossing one leg over the other.

"You were?" Boomer spoke with disinterest. He wanted to be alone. "Isn't Butch around?"

"He's in the room but I wanted to hang out with you. You're always too busy being alone to have you know, a conversation with your brother."

Boomer forced a smile. "Fine, let's converse. Have you finished your English assignment yet?"

Smiling back, Brick shook his head. "Not yet. Chase and I are working on it tomorrow," Brick glanced over towards the pool tables and nodded towards Chase. "He's still mad about that stunt that Daisey and Buttercup pulled on him yesterday."

"I wish I could have seen it." Boomer smiled for real. He had heard the story from Butch the other night but hearing the story wasn't nearly as good as witnessing it first hand. Boomer knew that Buttercup was bound to do something like this eventually, and he actually felt proud - even though she hated him.

Brick chuckled. "I didn't find it that funny at the time, but the look on Butch's face was priceless."

"He told me that he's trying out for the football team tomorrow."

"It's about time. We've been here for almost four months."

Nodding in agreement, Boomer replied, "He's been practicing non-stop for weeks. I don't see why he hasn't asked to be on the team yet He's ten times better than Royale."

Brick's lips stretched into a grin. "Don't let Chase hear you say that. He's very competitive."

Boomer's eyes rolled. "I get that he's your roommate and all, but why are you friends with him?"

"Why aren't you friends with anyone?"

"Touché."

Sitting up straighter, Brick looked at Boomer. His red eyes grew serious and it was hard to look away. "We have to live here for the next two years, Boomer. It's about time that you at least attempted to find someone to be friends with."

Boomer nodded absentmindedly as he stared in Bubbles' direction. He heard her laugh again and the sound made his heart thump rapidly. He tried his hardest not to smile at how addicting her laugh was. There was something about Bubbles, something that drew him to her. It could have been the counterpart bond, trying to pull them together in an epic collision, but Boomer didn't see it that way.

It was all her doing. Bubbles wasn't like any other girl. She had that killer smile, her short fuse when people made fun of her height, the way she flipped her hair confidently like she controlled everything around her, how she chewed her bottom lip when she was nervous, how she drooled at the sight of fashion and art, everything about her was special and unique and beautiful.

He just wanted to _know_ her.

* * *

18:24 p.m.

**Boomer Jojo's POV**

Later that afternoon, I was sat alone in the back garden. The wind was thick and I could tell that it was going to rain soon. I tried to soak up as much outside as I could before I would have to go back inside the school. I had my drawing pad sitting on my knees, and I was tracing random symbols and doodles. I couldn't even concentrate long enough to draw something decent. It frustrated me. All day I had been unable to think straight, or do anything that involved being, you know, normal. But I was used to that anyway.

I could have sworn that I heard someone's shoes trampling the grass, which was strange because I was the only person who ever sat in the back garden. That was why I liked it. No one liked the Utopia but me. It was the only place of pure solitude in the entire school. Who would want to come here? Unless...someone like me who also enjoyed silence and peace.

_Oh, god._

_What was she doing here?_

"Hey."

Looking up from my sketch pad, my eyes fell onto Bubbles Utonium. My heart began to pound with an unknown emotion. It was wrong of me to even think it - but she looked _beautiful._ Her hair was down again, long blonde curls cascaded around her shoulders. She had changed into a white shirt which was embedded with small blue rhinestones in the shape of a heart. Her dark blue pencil skirt was long, reaching just bellow her knees, so straight and drawing attention to her long legs and making the bright blue of her eyes stand out.

And she was smiling at me. Bubbles was actually smiling..at me. Confusion filled my gaze. Had I went to sleep and woken up in a parallel universe where Bubbles Utonium didn't hate me and I wasn't created to kill her? I shook my head. No, that was crazy. Then again, her smiling at me was just as equally crazy.

Swallowing loudly in the silence, I blinked at her. "I thought your sisters didn't want you to talk to me?"

Bubbles placed both of her hands on her hips and raised her eyebrows. There's that confidence and sass that I had missed. To be honest I had missed a lot of it. I had never met anyone like Bubbles before, and when she was this close to me, my heart leapt wildly as if the counterpart bond was responding to her presence. My hands clammed up and my face felt hot. What was Bubbles Utonium doing to me?

"I told you that I like to think for myself," She replied sharply. "I don't do what they tell me to do anymore."

I tried to fight back my smile but I could already feel it taking shape. "You really haven't changed."

She pursed her lips. "I wish I could say the same for you."

"I'm not trying to kill you. So, yeah, I'd say that I've changed a lot."

"You know what I mean, Boomer."

Bubbles took a step closer before sitting down beside me on the grass. I eyed her cautiously. First she smiled at me, and now she was sitting next to me? What was happening? I could feel my heart thumping faster and louder, I was sure that Bubbles could hear it from where she was sat. It was like my whole body was alit just by her presence. I couldn't explain it.

She turned to face me and her eyes hardened as if she wanted to have a serious talk with me. I didn't do well with serious conversations. Well, actually, I didn't do well with conversations in general. Bubbles frowned at me and scanned my eyes like she was looking for something, or rather someone, inside of me.

"The Boomer Jojo that I knew was loud-mouthed, self-assured and knew how to laugh at himself. Now-" She shook her head, her beautiful blonde hair trashing. "Now you're just..a lone wolf."

I blinked. "A lone wolf?"

"You're always alone. I always see your brothers hanging out with Chase, but you never do."

Letting out a scoff, I grimaced. "That's because Chase Royale is insufferable."

Bubbles' expressive eyes rolled. "Again, you know what I mean, Boomer! Why are you so un-sociable?"

I looked away from her. "It's none of your business."

"The Boomer that I knew-"

"The Boomer that _you_ knew is gone," I interrupted her, my voice raising. I swallowed loudly. "In more ways than one. Why do you even care, Bubbles? We're not friends. I don't want to be your friend. I..can't be your friend." My voice sounded weak and strained to my ears.

"Why not?" She questioned. Unable to come up with a response, I stood up and tried to walk away, but then I felt Bubbles' hand grasping at my wrist, pulling me back to face her. "Don't walk away from me, Boomer. Come on, tell me why you and I can't be friends, because I can't think of a _single_ reason."

I suppressed a sigh at her persistence. She was making me feel things that I had never felt before and I couldn't handle it anymore. I didn't do this. I didn't open up to anyone and I liked it that way. Opening up to people, investing in people and trusting them..it just wasn't worth it. If I didn't care for anyone, then I couldn't open myself up to feeling all of the bad things. There was nothing wrong with that.

I faced Bubbles head on and felt a surge of adrenaline rushing through me. She made me feel so alive.

"How about the fact that your sisters think I'm evil? Or that I was literally created to destroy you? Have you forgotten all about that!?" I yelled desperately. Just being around her made my heart race. It was all that I could hear besides her rough breathing. She felt it too.

"You-" Bubbles frowned and looked at me - really looked at me, like she was seeing right through me. "-You're different now. You left Townsville to start a normal life, a better, honest life. I have no reason to hate you anymore, and you have no reason to hate me."

"I don't hate you. I just _can't_ be friends with you." But I wanted to. For some reason I wanted it more than anything in the world. "What would your sisters say?"

Bubbles smiled softly at me. "I don't let them make my decisions anymore. And who said they even had to find out?"

I raised a brow. "Why do you want to be my friend so badly?"

"I could use a real friend right now," She looked down at her shoes as if it was hard to say this to my face. "We can't deny that we have a connection. I like talking to you, okay? I can be myself and I don't have to hide or worry about saying the wrong thing. Plus I don't want you to be alone all the time."

I watched as Bubbles finished her speech and looked back up at me with her brilliant blue eyes. My heart leapt faster. Every bone in my body was aching to give in to temptation and make her happy. It was as if the counterpart bond was growing with every passing minute that I spoke to her.

Nodding slowly, I gave in and it was the easiest thing that I had ever done before.

"I'll think about it."

Turning around, I exited the Utopia. I didn't even bother to take my sketch book with me. If I took it, I knew that I would just end up accidentally drawing her again and all of those weird emotions would come back. I didn't want friends. But for some reason I wanted to be friends with Bubbles more than anything.

And in that moment I just _knew_. It wasn't the counterpart bond anymore.

* * *

**~ I'd like to say that the next chapter will take a bit longer than the rest, the chapter itself is longer and the writing is going to be complicated for me (Writing football matches and such) but I'll get it up as soon as I can! ~**

**Next Chapter - (Butch's Chapter) Butch sets himself up for a fall when he gets to play for the Ashville Falcons - and accidentally steals Chase's place as Captain. Buttercup's anger causes her to break another rule as she and Butch come to blows during Gym class. Meanwhile, the girls finally get let out of the school for the evening and decide to explore Kansas.**

**Please review! It'll only take a couple of seconds (:**

**- Allie**


	6. Wicked

**Ashville Academy**

**~ Hey guys! So this chapter came up a bit later, sorry for that, but I had a busy weekend. Nevertheless, enjoy the chapter, and get ready all of you Butch Jojo lovers, because Butch is going crazy in this chapter ~**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters in this story, minus the own characters. I also don't own rights to the song lyrics.**

**Here's some replies to reviews!**

**Jeannette-8o - Aw thank you angel! ^_^ Give me a mail some time, it's been ages since we've talked!**

**Wherethewolveshowl - Haha, very sweet, glad you like the new story!**

**Elisa - Thank you, angel! Lovely name by the way**

**wildgirl777 - Yeah, I get you. Don't worry, the next chapter is Brick's chapter so there will be a lot of Brick and a lot of Blossom to look forward to (:**

**TheKnightOtaku - Aww that's sweet ^_^ Glad you both enjoy it! Aw thanks a ton, that made me smile (:**

**The Lady Otaku - You're so sweet! Haha, I do hope I didn't make you wait too long!**

**Godess Bubbles - Haha, the blues are very adorable. Thank you so much for the lovely words (: Also, if you're excited to see more Bubbles/Boomer action, I think you're going to love chapter nine. It's bound to make the blue lovers smile!**

**insane4iero - Awwwww! I adore you right now xD Thanks a ton, angel!**

* * *

Previously; _"I'm having.." She tried to speak but her breathing was too rapid. She sucked in a breath and pushed the words out. "..P-Panic attack."_

_Eyes as wide as dinner plates and heart racing, Butch bent down slightly to be at her eye-level. "It's okay, just try to calm down."_

_Buttercup's eyes rolled open as she sent a death glare his way and growled._

_"Hold your breath," Butch practically yelled above Buttercup's loud breathing. "Holding your breath stops panic attacks. Do it!"_

_Everything went quiet as Buttercup sealed her lips and held her breath in. She was seeing spots everywhere, she couldn't even see Butch anymore, she could just hear his voice and feel his sleeve as she curled her fist tighter around it. She began to count in her head. 1. 2. 3. 4. She opened her mouth and shook her head violently._

_"I can't..I need to get out of here right now!" She bit out, closing her eyes again._

_"Listen to me, you insufferable girl!" Butch's voice laced with authority. "Everything is going to be fine. The power is going to come back on soon, and we'll get out of here, and you'll be back to your regular, annoying self."_

_Buttercup shook her head and said nothing. Her breathing was slowing down but it wasn't enough. Butch could feel her hand slipping away from his sleeve as if she was losing absolute control. He shook his head, he wasn't giving up that easily._

_"You're going to be okay."_

_Her breathing slowed more._

_"You're going to be okay." He repeated._

_Her breathing stopped._

_"Buttercup.."_

_Her eyes opened._

XoXoXoXoXoXo

_I'm a beast came to rip this spot up._  
_Stick to chords cause the devil wears Prada._  
_We want peace but we can make this rowdy, stop._  
_We don't want to hurt nobody._  
_You can't hate me cause my nature's nice,_  
_And my heart's for the people of the world tonight._  
_If you got a problem with it take it up with life,_  
_Cause if you try to push me it ain't going to be nice._

_- Thousand Foot Krutch, I Get Wicked_

Friday, February 8th, 2013. 6am.

(Butch)

**Butch Jojo's POV**

My eyes snapped open and I was torn from sleep the second that I heard my phone vibrating beside me. I blinked a couple of times to adjust to the light coming through the window and rubbed at my eyes. I reached over to the cabinet beside my bed and grabbed my phone to shut off the alarm. You'd think that by now I'd be used to getting up at six in the morning to do my daily routine but I still felt half-dead each time. I looked over to Boomer's bed. He was still asleep, of course, and he was snoring disturbingly loud. I was surprised that his snoring didn't wake me up, it was louder than the vibration on my phone.

I slid out of bed and ran my hands through my hair. I could hear rain dropping down the window and rolled my eyes. That was one thing that I hated about Kansas - rain, rain, rain. Every day. Basically crawling towards my wardrobe, I let out a yawn. I'm the last person that anyone would think to have a morning routine, but I did. I liked to stay in shape, especially when I wanted to play for the school's football team. I had to do the routine. Reaching into my wardrobe, I pulled out a long-sleeved green shirt and a pair of grey track trousers. I put them on in under twenty seconds and left my sleeping clothes on the floor.

I snuck past Boomer's bed and stood before the window, and I opened it. I should mention that my window is the only window that the staff hasn't ever checked, therefore they haven't noticed that the magnetic lock is broken. I noticed it on my first day in the school but I never told anyone. I couldn't tell Boomer, he would probably end up doing something to break it, therefore it would need to be checked out and they would fix the lock. And I definitely couldn't tell Brick. With his annoying morals, he would probably tell the staff.

Once I actually thought about using the window to escape. I planned it out in my head - pack a bag, sneak out, run like hell. And then I came up short. I wouldn't know where to go. Then I thought about my brothers. They both wanted to be here. Idiots. But I couldn't leave them. Even if they annoy me on a daily basis, they're still all I have and if they want this then I guess I just have to deal with that. Because that's what families do right? They put up with each other and don't question it.

I opened the window slowly and carefully, just like I did every morning, unless by some weird action Boomer was actually up before six in the morning. That had only happened twice though, because he had a massive amount of homework. I put one foot out and hoisted myself up. Considering that I was on the second floor of the building, I had to scale down the drain-pipe. It seemed like a lot of effort at first but I got used to it. After making my way down, I jumped down and landed on my feet, effortlessly.

It amazed me how I had done this for almost four months and had never been caught. Either the staff are incompetent or just plain lazy. Nevertheless, I was glad that I had never been found out.

Taking a deep breath, I began to do my regular stretches, preparing for my run. Brick had always asked how I ate like a pig and slobed around all day yet I still had an awesome body - my words, not his - and I always just said that I was lucky and of course, awesome just like my body. But what I was really doing was going for a fifteen minute run every day.

Once my stretches were done, I took off.

I started off with a jog, that would soon progress into a run. My mind was clear as I jogged towards the football field to do a couple of laps. I took steady breaths and made sure to move my arms as much as I could.

As I sped off faster, I thought about what day today was. Today was try-out day; Aka, the day that I get on the Ashville Falcons. I knew that I would get on the team. I've practiced for months - doing my daily routine and doing a quick game with Chase every now and then. They would be a fool not to let me on the team.

After I had done seven laps around the football field, I stopped for a breath and checked my watch. I had to make sure to get back before Boomer woke up. He always woke up at six-thirty to get a long shower before anyone else got up. I had done more than enough and worked up enough of a sweat that I needed to a long shower too so I turned around and began to sprint back towards the second building.

I climbed up the drain-pipe - which by the way, is a hell of a lot harder than snaking down it - and easily snuck back in through the window. I landed quietly back on the ground of my room and closed the window before brushing the dirt off of my hands. You'd think that even with being so careful, that sneaking in and out through the window would wake Boomer up. Luckily he slept like a freaking log. Barely Boomer's alarm clock blasting at full sound could wake him up, so I never needed to worry about him finding out about my secret window.

Once I was inside I took a glance at the calendar pinned up above my head. Today's box had "Football tryouts!" scrawled across it in messy handwriting. I smirked to myself. There was no way that I wasn't making the team.

Watch out Falcons. Here I come.

XoXoXoXoXo

10:03 a.m.

Friday was always my favourite day of the week. Not just because we got to go outside after a draining four days of classes, but because instead of the usual three classes per day, there was only two on Fridays. I never understood why boarding schools didn't have six classes like regular high schools but I definitely wasn't complaining. Another reason that I liked Friday - double Gym. Two hours of pure brilliance. I hated every other class, and Coach Taylor was the only teacher that I actually liked. He was the perfect teacher and coach, in my opinion.

I noticed something else when I walked into the Gym hall - Buttercup was put into this class. Having double Gym every Friday with Buttercup Utonium was going to be amusing. Of course, to her, she probably just saw it as a new excuse to spy on me to try to figure out if I was still an evil criminal mastermind. She had a good reason to though, I did look like a mastermind. I mean, just look at me.

The entire class were huddled in the centre of the Gym and I had a good feeling about that. Coach Taylor usually made us do various sports - Football, tennis, swimming, even dodgeball sometimes, which I always found hilarious. It was basically an excuse to throw balls and hit people. Who wouldn't love that? Well besides Boomer. He hates dodgeball. He said that it's a pathetic excuse for a sport. He usually just stood still and let someone hit him so he could be out of the game and go back to sitting on the bench, drawing on the tops of his shoes. Loner.

Coach Taylor, dressed in his usual white track-suit, turned to the class and blew the whistle hung around his neck to get our attention.

"So seen as we have a double period today, I thought we should try various things. Why don't we warm things up with a football match as usual?," Coach's favoured sport was always football. That's why he coached the school team. Apparently he used to be quite the player back when he was in high school. "Most of you in this class will need practice for the tryouts today anyway. Let's do this as girls versus boys."

Girls versus boys? It had been a while since we had done that.

I turned to look at Buttercup. She was standing at the far end of the group, looking around the Gym hall in disinterest, until her eyes met mine. Her gaze narrowed at me and she looked as if she wanted to tear me apart - which she probably did, knowing Buttercup. The only interesting part of the 'girls versus boys' game was going to be showing Buttercup how much better I am. I smirked at the thought. I caught Buttercup roll her eyes like she knew exactly what I was thinking.

Coach addressed us and waved his arm to the left. "Alright, split up. Boys on the left and girls on the right."

Buttercup and I shot each other a competitive glare before we walked off in opposite directions. Oh, I was going to enjoy this. I joined the boys and took my place beside Johnny Sinclair - a friend of mine, and also Holiday's illegitimate son. I rolled my head around my shoulders and cracked my knuckles. Today was going to be my day. I was getting onto the Ashville Falcons. There was no doubt about it.

The whistle blew and everyone ran for the centre, all eager to get to the football sitting on the dividing line. To my surprise, it wasn't me that got the ball. Buttercup had tooken off with a speed so rarefied that if I had blinked, I would have missed her. One of the boys got there at the same time as her, but she kicked it past him, skidding forward with amazing speed. One of my teammates tried to kick the ball away from her foot but she spun herself around to block him from the ball and then whizzed right past him.

I was so entranced by her that I forgot to move. I shook my head. No way, head in the game, Butch. I ran downfield and interjected Buttercup just before she could get any closer to the goal. I kicked the ball from her and turned to see her expression. She didn't look happy. I smirked at her before jogging off with the ball, towards the girl's goal. I glided past the girls easily. Just when I was so close, that girl from my Social Studies class - Lisabeth - got the ball from me. I turned around just in time to see Lisabeth kick the ball towards Buttercup. Buttercup got it effortlessly and spun herself around, pushing past three of my teammates who were blocking her path, and then she took a shot.

She freaking scored the first goal.

Some of the girls began to cheer for her and I could feel my blood boiling. There was no way I was about to lose this game to a Utonium. She turned around and looked at me, wearing the confident smirk that I had worn a minute before.

"You're going to have to try harder than that, Sunshine." She yelled mockingly.

My eyes narrowed and I rolled up the sleeves of my green shirt. Buttercup wasn't going to make me look like an idiot. She made me so angry, I swear there was steam coming out of my ears.

I watched as our goalkeeper through the ball down field and Johnny got it. I waved my hands up to get his attention.

"Johnny, over here!"

He kicked the ball towards me and I got it easily. I turned around and eyed the opposing goal. I just had to get past the trio of women beside the goal, and then I'd be home-free. I raced down the field with the ball safely at my feet. I pushed past two girls and snaked around them to get towards the goal. I was so close. Buttercup was in front of me in seconds and was trying to get the ball from me but I wouldn't allow it. I spun around the ball and blocked her before zooming past and taking a shot for the goal.

Of course, it went in.

"Alright, we're got one to the girls and one to the boys," Coach Taylor announced. "Next goal wins."

I turned around to look at Buttercup. "Good luck, Sunshine."

Buttercup didn't look fazed. She smirked and crossed her arms. "I don't need luck. I can beat you blindfolded."

"Of course you could." I said, sarcasm dripping from my tone.

She sent a scowl my way before spinning around and heading back towards the other girls. I watched her go and let out a breath. She was so frustrating, but entertaining and funny, at the same time. I had almost forgotten how fun it was to have her around. Then again, the last time that I saw her before Ashville was back in Townsville when she was kicking me in the face.

The girl's goal keeper through the ball forward and we all went for it at the same time. Johnny got the ball and sprinted for the girl's goal, but the next thing he knew, he had Buttercup all up in his face. She interjected so gracefully that I barely even saw the transaction of the ball from his feet to hers, and then she sped off faster than I had ever seen her jog before.

I was so dazed that I didn't realise what Buttercup was about to do. When I looked over at our goal, I saw that Lisabeth girl nodding towards Buttercup, and then I saw the ball fly past me. It all seemed to go so fast; Buttercup kicked the ball over to her, Lisabeth aimed for the goal, the ball flew right past our goal keeper, and the game was won. By the girls.

I cursed.

You've got to be freakin' kidding me.

XoXoXoXo

**Regular POV**

Buttercup spun on her heel and stood before Butch, her head tilting to the side mockingly and an almost devious, smug smirk dancing on her lips.

"I guess even after all of these years, I'm still better than you at..just about anything."

Not holding back on a deep scowl, Butch took a step closer to her. "You might have won this one, but that doesn't mean that you're better than me, Utonium."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night."

With that, Buttercup turned herself around and began walking towards the benches with a spring in her step. She could feel her skin tingling in joy. The look on Butch's face when he realised that he had lost - lost to her - had just replaced 'Butch's expression after the water-soaking' as her most cherished moment of all time.

She thought that nothing could tear the content smile off of her face; that was, until Butch said something that made her blood boil thickly.

"At least I can sit in an elevator for ten minutes without freaking out." Butch called out to her bitterly.

Stifling a growl, Buttercup turned back and marched towards her counterpart. When she made it to him, she watched as he smiled meanly at her, and this time she couldn't hold back her anger. The gloves were coming off. Buttercup gripped Butch's shirt collar with both hands and gave him a deadly threatening glare.

"You tell no one about that. It's embarrassing enough that I have-" She suddenly realised her audience and lowered her voice to a sharp whisper, "-random panic attacks, I don't need people knowing that the likes of you had to help me out."

Butch lowered his face to hers boldly and smirked. "What would you do if I did tell someone, huh?"

"Are you just trying to piss me off? Because it's working."

Wrapping his hand around Buttercup's wrist, Butch pried her grip from his shirt and pushed her hands back. He leaned into her - so close that he could feel her breath, so close that she could smell his cologne - and he narrowed his eyes dangerously, and almost crazily.

"Good." He bit out.

He turned around and prepared to walk back over to the boys, when he felt Buttercup tap on his shoulder.

"Oh, Butch. To answer your earlier question.."

When Butch spun back around to hear what she had to say, he was met with Buttercup's fist in his face. Butch staggered back a step or two and blinked uncontrollably. He almost forgot how sore Buttercup's punches were. He shook his head to rid the stars dancing in his line of sight and he let out an animalistic grin.

"You-" He drawled, his voice a deadly whisper. "-are _so_ dead, Utonium!"

He placed his hands on each of her shoulder blades and gave her a slight shove. Buttercup stumbled back slightly and the look in her eyes went from angry to murderous in a flash. Before Butch could process what was about to happen, Buttercup leaped up and tackled him to the ground.

The counterparts rolled around on top of each other, both fighting for dominance, and both coming up short. Eventually Buttercup managed to get the upper hand and pinned Butch to the ground by blocking his arms with her knees. She raised her fist, ready to deliver a second black-eye, when they heard Coach Taylor's whistle boom loudly throughout the Gym hall.

"That's enough! Jojo, Utonium, get up right now!" They did as they were told and stood up before Taylor. Butch held a hand to his eye while Buttercup shot visible daggers at him, hissing like an animal, fists curled and eyes wild. "Jojo, you're supposed to be trying out for the team today. If I see anymore violence then there's no way I'm letting you on my team, are we clear?"

Biting back a comment, Butch nodded. "Crystal."

Taylor nodded and turned to Buttercup. "Tomorrow you can both report to Mrs Sinclair. She'll decide what to do with you two. Now get on the bench, the pair of you!"

Buttercup wanted to argue that Butch provoked her, that she hadn't just broken Blossom's 'no violence' rule for no reason, but she knew that anything she said would just be fruitless. She pushed past Butch and headed for the benches beside the Gym door, casting a glance towards the females who were all whispering to each other like gossiping children. She scowled at them terrifyingly which caused all of them to immediately fall silent.

Sighing, Buttercup parked herself on the bench and ran a hand through her short black hair.

"Great. I got into a fight on my first week," Buttercup tugged at the ends of her hair in stress. "Blossom is going to_ love_ this."

* * *

12:13

**Regular POV**

Having just returned from a long shower, Buttercup strolled into her room, her hands fumbling the towel on top of her head. She could still feel her insides burning at the thought of Butch Jojo. She was livid, but she was also disappointed in herself. She had worked so hard to keep her anger at bay, to be around Butch and do nothing, but the second that she let him get into her head was the second that she didn't have control over her actions anymore.

Buttercup didn't think that she could hate someone this much. Whenever she thought of him, her skin tingled, wanting to punch anything in her way. It still pained to think that Butch had brought her back from a panic attack. Sometimes even her sisters couldn't manage it and yet Butch had done it so effortlessly, like he knew her, like he knew exactly what to do and what to say. It had to be the counterpart bond - that connection that they had to each other because they were just like one another. The bond seemed crazy but Buttercup knew it was there. It was always going to be there.

She continued to dry her damp hair as she passed Daisey's bed and took a seat on her own. She sunk into the bed, propping her back against the wall. Her head hurt, it ached, and she still held all of that anger that she just couldn't get rid of. Throwing the towel beside her, Buttercup ran a hand through her hair and looked over at Daisey. The Aussie was looking at her with a bright smile on her face.

"I heard that you scored a goal in Gym," Daisey clapped her hands together. "Congrats, roommate."

Buttercup raised a brow. "How did you hear that?"

"That's what passes for news around here," The brunette waved her hand. "News travels very fast in this school. I heard from someone in your class. She said that the new chick made a fool out of the boys," Daisey drawled excitedly as she sat up on her bed, crossing her legs and looking straight ahead. "I just assumed that it was you. I mean, I don't know Blossom and Bubbles very well but something tells me that their talents do not lie in sports."

"Well, you've got a point there," Buttercup nodded as she leaned back against her bed frame. "Blossom prefers books over sports and I don't think Bubbles has even set foot near a football." She chuckled to herself and looked at her roommate.

Daisey suddenly smirked. "That wasn't all that I heard."

Sitting up, Buttercup blinked. "Oh God. What else did you hear?"

"Nothing too interesting," Daisey inspected her beige painted finger nails, a disinterested look on her face. "Just that you and Captain Genius' idiotic brother got into a scrape," She looked up at Buttercup and a mischievous grin played at her pried lips. "Shall I except to see scars when I next see him?"

"His name is Butch and yes, you should expect scars."

Daisey leaped in joy and clapped again. "I wish I could have seen it! Nothing interesting ever happens in this place," A frown tugged at her lips. She looked Buttercup up and down and her blue eyes began to sparkle. "I have a feeling that you and your sisters are going to change that."

Buttercup smirked. "I don't know about that but who knows, maybe we'll bring a little entertainment to this school."

Waving her hand to dismiss the topic, Daisey jumped up from her bed. "Onto more important matters; you get to leave the prison today."

"I almost forgot that we're allowed outside on Fridays." Buttercup's once stressed, angered demeanor drastically switched to one of excitement and adventure.

"Yes, now let me find you an outfit, because by the way," She pointed a finger at Buttercup's clothes and shook it. "That is so _not_ acceptable."

As Buttercup looked down at her shirt and jeans, Daisey walked over to the two-person wardrobe beside the door and opened it. She rummaged around Buttercup's side and began to throw clothes out behind her, muttering a course of "Nope's", "Never's" and even a "What in the bleedin' heck is this?"

Buttercup pursed her lips as she tugged at her shirt. "My clothes are just fine. Anyway, speaking of going outside, where do you usually go when you get out?"

"Hmm," Daisey mumbled from inside the wardrobe. "Well there's this fabulous café down the road. I usually go there and eat my weight in cheesecake before heading downtown and doing some shopping," She peaked her head out to give Buttercup a look. "Which, by the way, _you_ need to do. I've never seen so much plain clothing in all of my sixteen years of existence!" She pulled out a plain black shirt and frowned. "Nu-uh. Bad choice, roommate."

Rolling her eyes, Buttercup sighed. "Shopping is more of Bubbles' thing. But the café sounds good. The food in this place sucks. I'd kill for a cheeseburger right now."

She heard Daisey chuckle. "They serve burgers at the café. I'll tell you where to find it, but I can't come with you."

"Why not?"

"I've got detention from twelve-fourty to half one, and then I've got a stack of English homework the size of Chase's ego to finish."

She suppressed a laugh at Daisey's comment but couldn't fight the grin tugging at her lips. "Mr Lomax doesn't like you very much, does he?"

"He's always had it in for me," Daisey said as she glared at a pair of black jeans with holes in them. "Um, are these holes intentional?" She watched as Buttercup nodded and she let out a large sigh. "You're so clueless, roommate. Anyway Lomax has it in for me, basically. I should totally complain. It's discrimination."

Buttercup shook her head. "Believe me, complaining never works. Don't get mad, get even."

Having found an outfit acceptable by her standards, Daisey finally tore herself from the closet and turned to look at Buttercup. She clutched the clothes to her chest and raised a thin brow at Buttercup's comment. Curiosity filling her sea blue eyes, Daisey pouted.

"Go on."

"You could always play some pranks on him, and you don't even have to be sly about it. Considering this school has roughly one hundred students or more, there will be no way that he can prove it's you. Therefore, he can't prove that you're responsible just like you can't prove that he discriminates towards you. He'll be in the same boat and eventually he'll have to surrender."

Daisey blinked.

She ran over to Buttercup and leaned down in front of her bed, letting the clothes that she was holding fall to the ground beside her. She looked up at Buttercup with absolute adoration sparkling in her eyes.

"Buttercup, I know that we've only known each other for a couple of days, but you're, like, my_ idol_. How do you come up with this stuff!?"

Buttercup breathed out a laugh. "I've been a trouble maker since the age of five."

Standing up once again, Daisey scrambled to pick up the clothes and she clutched them again. She smiled at Buttercup and came close to bowing in awe. "You know, I think I'm going to enjoy the next two years," She passed Buttercup the clothes and grinned, putting both hands on her hips. "Here you are, my fashion impaired friend."

Looking down at the frilly green shirt that Bubbles had given her for her birthday, and the pair of dark blue, fade wash shorts, Buttercup smiled. In reality she wouldn't be caught dead in a shirt that had a frilly strap holding it up, but she decided that she would wear them anyway. She appreciated how Daisey had been more like a friend to her than she had even know before, and how she had helped Blossom see the light after their argument. Wearing the outfit was the least that she could do.

"Thanks for the concern in my wardrobe choice," Buttercup said sarcastically. Her face grimaced as she looked up at Daisey. "Oh, and please don't remind me that I'm stuck here for two years."

A smile lit up Daisey's face. "You never know, roommate, you might end up liking this school."

"Not likely," Buttercup muttered. "You've been here for over a year. Do you like it?"

Daisey shrugged. "I don't love it, but it's home now. And for someone like you who doesn't have a home anymore, don't you think that you could maybe get used to having one again?"

The room fell silent for a moment. Buttercup clutched her green shirt in her hands and thought back to her old home, burnt to a crisp, dead just like her father. She swallowed the bile in her throat and shook her head softly to herself. She slid from the bed and headed towards the door.

"I'm going to go get dressed."

Daisey smiled and gave her a 'thumbs-up'. "Have fun exploring Kansas. I'll come out with you tomorrow, that is if I don't get anymore detention between now and then."

Buttercup grinned back. "I wouldn't count on it. I'll see you later on tonight."

She left and headed towards the stairs, all the while thinking of a life where Ashville Academy might one day be seen as home.

* * *

It was time for the football try-outs and Butch was waiting for things to get started. He stood in the side-lines with his arms crossed, tapping his foot impatiently. Adrenaline was rushing through his veins. He was ready for this, he had been ready for months. He wasn't going to blow this. Butch eyed Coach Taylor who was talking to his team. Taylor had decided to pit five of the Falcons against five of the students that were trying out, all giving them their turns to prove if they were worthy of one of the two spots left on the team.

The ten members playing the game all huddled up, and Taylor had told Butch that he was playing in the first match. He was glad that he didn't have to wait around for his chance to prove how good he was. He rolled up his sleeves and did some quick stretches before Coach Taylor joined them.

And then Taylor blew his whistle, and it all kicked off.

Butch sped in and managed to get the ball before anyone else. He smiled in victory as he whizzed past the fellow try-outs and ran down field. Before he knew it, a Falcon member was coming at him at full speed. Butch spun himself around with the ball, managing to block the Falcon completely, and then he pushed towards the goal. With his mind in total focus, Butch glared at the opposing goal with narrow eyes and then he kicked.

He could barely contain his excitement when the ball went into the goal. He knew it would, but the feeling of shock mixed with pure adrenaline was brilliant. One of the Falcons - Johnny Sinclair - came up to pat him on the back and gave him a thumbs-up. Butch nodded at Johnny in thanks before everything kicked off again.

The Falcon's goal-keeper through the ball into the hoard and Butch raced to get it. His eyes narrowed when he saw one of the other try-outs get it before him. He wasn't about to let that happen. The try-out scooted past the Falcons blocking him and headed for the goal but Butch was faster. He interject with a swift under-cut and jogged away with the ball rustling between each foot.

With a powered kick, the ball flew down and dodged past the goal keeper. Another win for Butch. He smirked to himself as he saw the battered and shocked expressions of his fellow members. He heard Coach Taylor clapping from the sidelines and his confidence began to over-flow.

He watched as the Falcon's goal keeper kicked the ball down field. One of the other try-outs managed to get it, and he was off before anyone could interject him. The brown-haired try-out pushed past a hoard of three Falcon members and skidded towards the goal. With one swift kick, he managed to score a goal.

Butch was the next to get the ball from the keeper. He made sure to keep the ball close, as far away from any other try-out, as he jogged towards the goal. Before he could land a goal that would effectively win him three goals, one of the Falcons interjected and got the ball for himself. The Falcon nodded at one of his teammates - stood beside the opposing goal. And he went for a kick to pass it to him. Everything went in slow-motion for Butch as he saw the ball flying over-head, so close. He wasn't about to lose this opportunity.

Turning himself around, closing in on the ball, Butch kicked his leg up, overpowering his whole body, and the players watched in awe as Butch performed a perfect over head kick - or in other words, as it is known in football, a Bicycle Kick. The ball landed easily in the Falcon's goal.

As soon as the ball landed in the goal, Butch went temporarily blind. He could see stars floating around his vision. Eventually Butch was brought back to reality when he heard the shrill noise of Taylor's whistle. He rose up from his position on the ground and blinked a couple of times. He had really done it. Butch couldn't believe how easy that had been, how he was so in the moment, and how his months of practicing the perfect Bicycle kick had finally paid off. It was so flawless.

When Butch spotted Coach Taylor across the field, he noticed the man wave him over, beckoning him. Butch quickly dusted the grass blades off of his track trousers and rushed over, huffing as he was still short of breath. When he got to Taylor, he couldn't help but notice the look of astonish and pride in the man's blue eyes.

"Jojo, that was an amazing game. Not only did you make a fool out of my entire team but you also managed to perform an over-head kick, one of the most difficult tactic skills," Taylor shook his head in disbelief, a wide smile tugging at his crooked lips. "I think that it's safe to say that your talents don't lie in mere quarterback positions. I think that you may have the potential to lead as the team Captain."

Eyes growing in shock, Butch raised his eyebrow. "But what about Chase?"

"Royale is an excellent Captain, one of the best that Ashville has seen, but you have something special about you. I'm sure that he would understand that this is the best move for the team."

Butch could barely breathe. This was everything that he wanted and so much more. His skin began to tingle as if it was on fire, he could feel excitement rushing through him, overwhelming washing over. He was only about 90% sure that this was actually happening.

He blinked and swallowed loudly. "So you want _me_ to be the Captain of the Falcons?"

"I'll tell you what," Taylor drawled, looking thoughtful. "Tonight we have our first game of the year as you know. I'm putting you on the team, effective immediately. If you can prove that you're worth it, if you can land the winning goal and bring the team to success against the Valleywood Kings tonight, you're Captain."

Grinning, Butch nodded. "Thanks Coach, you won't regret this."

And as Butch paced towards the third building to find his brothers to tell them the good news, he barely noticed the look on Chase Royale's face as the Australian watched him from the side-lines.

He had heard every single word.

* * *

It was just turning five in the afternoon when Brick decided to buckle down and finally finish his English paper. He sat on his bed, his back propped up against the head-board, handwriting the finishing touches, trying hard to sound insightful. That's wasn't hard to achieve, Brick always managed to sound sharp and percipient. He found himself wondering how Blossom was doing on her assignment.

He remembered reading it while Blossom made a show of yelling at Buttercup after the water-soaking fiasco. It was beautiful, and so much more. She spoke passionately about David Levithan's work. All in all, it was ten times better than Brick's. He really did think that it was perfect. Although a part of him regretting telling Blossom that by writing it at the bottom of the page. Complimenting her paper, helping her achieve that extra confidence, just opened so many doors.

They weren't friends, and Brick wasn't sure if he even wanted that. He found Blossom entertaining and engaging and extraordinary. Until he saw Blossom on her first night, he rarely though of her. He did sometimes, late at night, when he pondered over his terrible past. He wondered how she was doing, wondered if he would ever see her again, but he never thought about what he would do if he ever did see her again. And now he was just left to wonder.

When Brick was close to finishing the assignment, he felt someone sit down on his bed. Brick glanced up to see Chase parked at the bottom of the bed, his back sat against the wall, hands behind his head, humming a tune to himself as if he was deep in thought - Brick stifled a laugh. Chase Royale? Deep in thought? Yeah, right.

The blonde looked over at Brick casually. "How long until the project is done, mate?"

Brick didn't look up. "It's almost finished."

Nodding disinterestedly, Chase looked at the wall ahead of him. Coach Taylor's words were constantly scattering around in his mind. He couldn't think straight. Taylor wanted Butch Jojo to be the Captain, instead of Chase, who had done just fine, if not great, as Captain. The Falcons hadn't lost a game since Chase had been promoted. And now he was just going to be so easily replaced by a guy that Taylor had seen play for like five minutes? Chase was filled with rage. He couldn't lose his spot to Butch, not when he had worked this hard to get there.

He thought back to when Brick and he became friends - on Brick's first day of Ashville - and how that night they had gotten to know each other. Chase had told Brick about Australia, about his favourite bands, about his twin sister and so much more. While Brick had told Chase about his fabricated life, his obsession for contact lenses and about how he and his brothers got sent to Ashville Academy in the first place.

Butch's anger issues got them thrown out.

Chase smirked.

"So," The Aussie drawled, trying to gain Brick's attention again. "You told me that you got sent here because Butch got in a scrape with that Nathan guy?"

Brick nodded. He still didn't look up. "Yeah. What about it?"

"What did Nathan do to make Butch so mad?"

"He just got on the wrong side of him," Brick spoke in a monotone. He hated telling this story. Believe it or not, he was actually happy in his old life, or rather his new life, free from crime and all things Townsville. "Butch has always had bad anger issues, ever since he was young. If someone does something to make him mad, he can't control how livid he gets. That's why Boomer and I have to make sure that he stays out of trouble."

Chase looked away in thought. It was all so simple to him. One push in the right direction and Butch wouldn't be able to control himself. And tonight was the perfect night to secure his place at the top of the team - Game night. It wouldn't take too much effort to make one of the opposing players push Butch's buttons. Everyone from Valleywood were rude.

He smirked again. It was like taking candy from a very temperamental baby.

"Well then," Chase examined his nails, a devious look flooding his coffee coloured eyes. "You'd better keep an eye on him during the game tonight. Someone might get on his famous bad side."

Brick finally looked up from his paper, and he raised an eyebrow. "I'm not worried. Butch will be too focused on the game to distract himself with the other players."

"I'm sure that you're right."

Chase's eyes grew even more devious. Butch wasn't going to make it past the second-half.

* * *

The Kansas rain had finally cleared up, and just in time, as Buttercup took her first step outside of the school. She felt a sigh of relief escape from her lips as she passed the open gate. She felt free and empowered and ready to do anything. Buttercup looked around, taking in the tall trees and the scenery. She had felt so caged before, so close to the outside world yet so out of reach at the same time.

Buttercup took another step, her gaze falling towards the expensive looking cars parked outside the school. What else was to be expected? Ashville was the second wealthiest town in all of Kansas - just behind Valleywood which was a good thirty minute drive away. Buttercup didn't know what to expect when exploring Ashville. She had been so used to the small, humdrum community of Townsville. This was like a whole other world.

Taking another step, Buttercup reached into the pocket of her shorts and pulled out her mobile phone. She got ready to text Blossom - to ask if she and Bubbles were done getting ready yet. Just as she opened the text, her light green eyes caught sight of something far more entertaining. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

A green Ducati Monster 696 motorcycle with whips of black. Beautiful, tall, 360 pounds of pure awesome and style. It was the type of bike that Buttercup had only ever seen in magazines and television commercials. Buttercup had always been a fan of fast cards and motorcycles. She liked thrill, and these types of transportation provided that. She had never been so close to a Ducati before, her skin was tingling in desire. She might have drooled a little.

"It's awesome, right?"

Buttercup barely understood what was going on around her. It wasn't until someone put their hand on the motorcycle that she realised that she wasn't alone. She looked up at the culprit and found Butch Jojo. Buttercup felt herself growl. Of course it was him. She looked back down to his hand on the bike - possessive and easy. And then something occurred to her.

Her eyebrow raised high. "This is yours?"

"Last time I checked."

Buttercup's eyes scanned the bike again and she couldn't believe that it belonged to the bane of her existence. She shook her head in confusion and met Butch's eyes again.

"How did you afford this?"

"Who said that I paid for it?"

"Ah," Buttercup's eyes rolled. She should have known. "So you're not fully reformed then?"

A smirk tugged at Butch's lips. "My brothers are. Me? Not as much," He turned his attention back to the bike and ran a hand across the green wonder. "You know, I could give you a ride some time."

Buttercup snorted unattractively. "I wouldn't get on a motorcycle with you even if someone paid me."

"It's your loss," Butch sing-songed. "You don't know what you're missing."

Just as she was ready to fire back a response, Buttercup caught sight of long auburn hair. She turned her attention away from Butch and his gorgeous motorcycle and instead walked over to Blossom, who was standing not that far off from them, fully dressed in a spaghetti sleeved pink shirt and a long white pencil skirt. Blossom looked in between her sister and Butch and raised her eyebrow. Buttercup was smiling widely like nothing was amiss, but if she had talked to Butch, obviously something had been amiss.

Blossom cleared her throat. "Um, are you ready to go, Buttercup?"

"Yeah, sure. Let's go."

Buttercup hooked her arm with Blossom's and began to walk forward, not without giving Butch a rude glare as she did so. Butch simply smirked back at her.

"I'll see you in Mrs Sinclair's office tomorrow," Butch called out to her. "Try not to get us into any more trouble, Utonium."

Sneering, Buttercup pulled away from Blossom and poked her finger at Butch's eye. "You know, your one black eye is looking a little lonely. I'd_ love_ to fix that."

"It's a date."

Buttercup watched with narrow eyes as Butch sent her a final, mocking grin, and then sauntered off back into the school. She could see Blossom giving her a confused look and a thought occurred to her - she had to tell Blossom just how Butch got that black eye. She cursed. No way, that wasn't going to be happening. Not today. She turned back to face her sister and replaced her once livid expression with one of excitement.

Judging by her raised eye-brow, Blossom didn't buy Buttercup's calm demeanor, and she was itching to ask what she doing talking to a battered Butch Jojo. Just as she opened her mouth to question it, Buttercup hooked their arms again and pulled her along enthusiastically.

"This is so exciting," Buttercup prattled on. "I thought that I would never see the light beyond the fence again," Something else occurred to Buttercup. She sent a questioning look towards Blossom. "Hey, where's Bubbles? I thought that she was leaving with you?"

Blossom wanted to talk about Butch, or rather why Buttercup had talked to him. But she realised that she wasn't going to get an answer. Plus, maybe some things were just better left unturned. Blossom pushed her curiosity aside and continued walking at a normal pace.

"She told me that she wasn't feeling all that great. She said that she's just going to explore with us tomorrow instead."

Buttercup raised a brow. "She seemed fine this morning."

"I guess she just came down with something, but we can still have fun, just us. Let's just do some exploring. Chase told me about some nice places we can go to."

Smiling, Buttercup nodded. "Awesome, let's check them out!"

Blossom smiled back. "You seem happy."

"Of course I am," Buttercup walked with an uncustomary spring in her step. "After being locked up in that place all week, I'm just glad to be out of there. I've been dying for some freedom for ages, and real food. Yeah, real food is gonna be epic."

"Definitely." Blossom agreed, holding back her laugh.

Buttercup and Blossom walked down the road, leading away from their new home and school, and into the big city of Ashville. It was just as they had expected. The buildings were tall and intricate, homes paved with picket fences and trails leading to their doors, where welcome mats sat, adding a homely feel all around. The shops varied from designer boutiques, fancy restaurants, electronic device stores and everything that you would expect to find in a town with wealth.

The roads were busy, lined with expensive and beautiful cars all trying to beat the mid-afternoon rush hour. All that could be heard was the sounds of car honks, strangers chattering on their phones as if they weren't heard by anyone that they passed and trees flying around thanks to the Kansas wind. Ashville was busy and loud. Too busy and loud for Blossom's liking. It made her miss the quaintness of Townsville that she hadn't realised she had taken for granted.

Once Blossom's eyes spotted a small white building with a crimson coloured roof-top and fancy golden lining around the windows, she halted in her step. Her wise pink eyes scanned the large wooden sign hung above the singular black door and she read the name. Turning to Buttercup, Blossom pointed at the classically beautiful building.

"This is it. This is the café that Chase told me about."

Buttercup's eyes skimmed the sign and she frowned. "L'Aigre Doux? It's a Spanish café?"

With a roll of her eyes, Blossom shook her head. "That's French. In English it's called 'The Sweet and Sour'. According to Chase, it's supposed to be really great."

"Nope. No way. Nu-uh. I ain't eating no snails. Not in this lifetime."

"Not all French cafe's and restaurants sell snails, Buttercup. Will you _please_ just give it a chance?"

Her lips pursed in hesitation, Buttercup looked at the café. She had seen at least three fast-food places during their ten minute walk and yet this was where Blossom wanted to eat? That seemed pretty fitting. Buttercup narrowed her gaze and zeroed in through the windows. It wasn't crowded, so it wouldn't be loud, and she couldn't spot people eating anything that looked still alive. It was going to have to do.

"Fine," Buttercup conceded. "But if I see one snail, I'm out."

Blossom let out a sigh. "Snails aren't the grossest food in the world. I've seen you eat far worse."

"Hey! I know a thing or two about good food."

"This coming from the inventor of the 'Nutella Smoothie'," Blossom deadpanned.

"Technically not a food," Buttercup pointed out. She smiled proudly at the mention of her invention. "Plus, that was one_ amazing_ smoothie. People would pay big bucks for my smoothie with the secret ingredient."

Blossom raised a brow. "Your secret ingredient was Nutella. It's hardly a secret if it's in the name."

Her eyes blazing in frustration, Buttercup through her arms in the air. "Can we please just go inside now?"

"Fine, come on."

With that, they stepped into the small café and Blossom closed the door behind her. Their feet were immediately met with a soft, hazel coloured hard-wood floor. The walls were the main entertainment, painted a vibrant yet at the same time, calming yellow, attracting attention. In the far corner sat two white, leather sofas facing each other, a single glass coffee table coming between them.

Not far off from the sofas was a round oak table, surrounded by three cream coloured chairs. The chairs were slightly plush for comfort, and there was more to come. At the front of the café there was two identical tables also fitted with chairs, only they both had two chairs rather than three. The lack of tables just showed how small and quaint the café was. Blossom immediately fell in love. This seemed like a good place to just get away from everything, and sit with a cup of coffee or a novel and just relax.

On the right from the door sat the counter. Beside said counter stood a large glass cabinet fit with four trays behind it, filled to the brim with fresh pastries and mouth-watering deserts. The wall behind the counter was fit with shelves also, lined with coffee cups and mugs, and plates and a cutlery tray. The entire cafe itself was well designed and intricate and perfect.

Buttercup's eyes scanned the café for a table. There was bunch of people that she recognised from school sitting on the couches, all chatting and laughing and eating together. A trio of strangers sat at the three-seater table, leaving the only option as one of the two tables near the front.

"I'll go get us lunch," Blossom said as she made a move for the counter. She looked over her shoulder and at Buttercup. "You wait here, and for love of God, don't break anything."

"I'm not a five-year old." Buttercup answered and rolled her eyes.

"Sometimes I'm not so sure."

Buttercup watched her saunter off to the counter and breathed out a laugh. As weird as it sounded, Buttercup actually missed her usual back-and-fourth with Blossom. Their banter was entertaining, and it was what made them such good friends as well as close sisters. If you can be heavily insulted by someone and find it funny - that's real friendship. Or it was to Buttercup anyway.

She sat down at one of the two-seater tables by the front. After two minutes she could feel her foot tapping impatiently and her eyes darted towards Blossom. The auburn haired Utonium was talking politely with the cute blonde behind the counter. Buttercup rolled her eyes again. Curse Blossom's social nature.

When Blossom finally returned to the table, Buttercup eyed the drinks in her hand. She held two of what looked like coffee, judging by the tall, to-go container with the lid. Blossom passed one of the drinks to Buttercup before taking a seat down opposite her. Buttercup took a long drink without hesitation. She loved coffee, all types, all flavours. Coffee was her best friend. She was upset to learn that the coffee made at Ashville Academy was absolutely disgusting, but here, maybe it was different.

And so it was.

It was vanilla heaven.

"Oh my god," Buttercup said for the third time in her entire life. She looked over at Blossom, a wide grin stretching across her lips, and tipped her drink up. "Iced Vanilla Latte? Like the good 'ol times?"

Blossom smiled back, delivering a nod. "I miss our tradition," She spoke with nostalgia, her eyes shining at the very mention of the past. "You know, it made mornings worth waking up for. Going down to Cafe Phoenix at absurd times in the morning and ordering Iced vanilla latte's and strawberry waffles. It was a strange tradition but it was ours."

Still reveling from the taste of cold vanilla heaven in her mouth, Buttercup sighed, feeling the rough sting of nostalgia herself. She felt her insides twist at the thought of losing anything more. She had already lost more than anyone her age should lose.

"Do you even remember how that tradition started?" Buttercup's voice was laced with confusion and a willing to remember. Her eyes were just plain curious.

Blossom shook her head and breathed out a laugh. "No, it was so long ago. You know, I always thought that Bubbles was jealous of our tradition because she was never a part of it. Well maybe now she can be."

"Yeah, totally," Buttercup agreed enthusiastically. "And _this_ can be our new Cafe Phoenix."

"And we'll do it every Friday instead of Sunday, to switch it up."

Smiling to herself, Buttercup looked down at the container in her hands. She felt her smile fading and her eyes grew serious as she felt the need to speak freely for a moment, instead of doing her usual thing and keeping every bad form of emotion locked away. "I thought that leaving Townsville meant that we would lose this, and that really, really sucked."

"I didn't," Blossom shook her head again. She watched as Buttercup looked back up and stared directly into her soft pink eyes. "No matter where we go, we'll always have our crazy traditions."

Buttercup beamed and the silence was filled with the sound of her stomach rumbling. "Please tell me that you ordered strawberry waffles?"

An easy laugh escaped from Blossom's pried lips. "The cashier told me that they'll be here in about five minutes."

"Good," Buttercup grinned from ear-to-ear. "I swear I could eat a horse right now."

Blossom raised a brow and playfully looked from left to right, leaning in closer to Buttercup. "Maybe you could. I mean, the French eat snails, who knows, they could eat horses too."

Holding back her laugh was fruitless for Buttercup. She shook her head frantically, soft black hair trashing around her shoulders, and held her hands out palm-first. She could barely breathe from her hysterics.

"Please don't say anything else about snails and horses. I think I'm about to throw up."

The two sisters laughed along with each other until their food came, and from then on, their tradition lived on.

* * *

19:46

It was time for the big game; The first game of the year. The school always made a huge deal about the school games. Sometimes it was a big deal. This was all the practice that the students had until their final year, when scouts would show up and offer them a way out, a scholarship. Some students had no families, most of the students had no wealth. The scholarship was the only hope that most of the team depended on. They needed this.

The bleachers were almost completely filled with Ashville Academy students, some of the staff and the families of the Valleywood Kings members - the opposing team. Valleywood was a town in Kansas, which also happened to be the wealthiest town in all of Kansas. Their school's football team was one of the best and a great rival for the Ashville Falcons. Their families could actually come over to view the game as Valleywood High was a private school, rather than an élite boarding school.

Butch was busy eyeing the stands, his eyes searching for someone in particular. He didn't see a single Utonium. He wasn't surprised. They didn't seem like the type of girls that would join in on the school festivities and watch the monthly football games. Butch couldn't deny that he was disappointed though. He had wanted Buttercup to be there, just so that he could prove himself as the better player. This was his chance to prove it to everyone.

He started his stretching, confidence surging through him. He wasn't going to mess this up. Butch took a break from his stretches when he saw Chase coming towards him and he stiffened involuntarily. He hadn't told Chase about what Coach Taylor had promised him. When Butch thought of declining the offer, he couldn't think any further. Chase was his friend, one of his best friends, maybe his only friend, but in this world you had to look out for yourself. Butch learned that a long time ago.

"You look nervous, man." Chase's accent boomed into the field, bringing Butch back to his normal train of thought.

"I don't do 'nervous'," I've just got a lot riding on this game." Butch answered rigidly.

Chase nodded slowly. "Yeah. I heard just how much you have riding on this."

Butch blinked. "You know about the captain spot? Chase, I'm-"

"Don't worry about it," The Australian waved his hand in the air. His face dropped almost perfectly, unquestionably fakely. "I saw you play. You were seriously ace. If you becoming captain is what's best for the team then I'll be happy to go back to my old spot."

An easy, surprised grin lit up Butch's face. "Seriously? That's awesome of you, Royale."

Chase smiled. And this time it was definitely fake. "Totally. I'm not gonna stand in your way. Just do your best out there, and what out for Eric."

"Eric?" Butch questioned with a raised brow.

"You know, the captain of the Valleywood Kings? He's an absolute dingbat. He's always trying to piss me off before games. His ego is like as big as Holiday Sinclair's hair."

Butch chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind," He placed a hand on Chase's shoulder and nodded at him. "Thanks."

Chase nodded back at him and watched as Butch walked over to the team. His team. The team that soon wouldn't be his anymore. Chase shook his head. No. If Butch was going to look out for himself, then Chase was going to do the same. There wasn't any room for regret anymore.

Ten minutes later, the Valleywood Kings had arrived, and the Ashville Falcons were ready.

It had gone deadly quiet as the opposing teams stretched and prepared for their first game of the year. Chase Royale was leading the team in a huddle, discussing battle strategies and weak points to exploit. Standing beside him, Butch was full of adrenaline. He felt ready to do better than his best, to lead the team to victory and secure his spot on the Falcons.

Butch looked up at the stands again and saw his brothers both watching him. Brick gave him an easy 'thumbs-up' while Boomer simply smiled - and even from all the way down on the field, Butch could tell that the smile was forced. His brother didn't want to be here, but he was, and that was what mattered. He nodded at them before turning back to the team and listening in.

On the other end of the field, The Valleywood Kings were doing the same, planning out strategies and such. They had never usually worried about facing the Falcons, but this year, they knew that something was different. The odds were no longer on them. And they needed to win this. They had things to prove too.

The crowd grew still and silent as Coach Taylor made his way on to the field, whistle in his hand, ready to start the game. Taylor looked over at Butch and gave the green-eyed boy his famous intense stare. Failure apparently wasn't an option whenever Taylor made that face. Butch wasn't worried. He had been ready for this for months.

And just when the muteness was almost unbearable, the sound of Coach Taylor's whistle deafened all around.

It all began to kick off at once.

The fastest members of the Falcon's and King's pushed forward and raced for the ball. Dean McNally - one of the best star players for the Valleywood Kings - managed to get the ball before anyone else. Boosting up at full speed, Dean dashed and swerved past the Falcon members and raced towards the goal.

The crowd went wild.

Butch blinked.

He had underestimated how hard the Kings had trained for this game. Dean was faster than ever before, finally a full-force threat. And he was just one of eleven adrenaline fueled players that they had to beat. All that Butch could do was watch as Dean raced with all of his might. He couldn't catch up to him, even if he ran his fastest. Butch cursed.

A blonde haired Falcon by the name of Thomas managed to interject the ball, and there was once more a glimmer of hope, although Thomas wasn't prepared for the hoard of King's blocking his path from the goal. The bulkiest of the Kings - Trevor Malone - got the ball, much to the excitement of most of the crowd, and pushed forward, knocking over anyone in his way. Trevor ran down field and scored.

Trevor scored the first goal.

The electronic score keeper beeped loudly. _Falcons: 0. Kings: 1._

A course of enthusiastic cheers and boo's echoed throughout the field, leaving the players partly hearing-impared, although fueled with adrenaline to keep going. The teams moved back to their sides and began collecting themselves for the next quarter. The Falcons was sure, they would be getting the next goal.

Chase looked over at Butch and narrowed his eyes. He slowly made his way over towards the green-eyed Jojo brother while the rest of his team went to grab some water before the second quarter. He made his way in front of Butch and threw his arm around his shoulder in fake comfort.

"Don't worry about that goal," Chase waved his hand. "Being ahead will only make them smug, therefore they won't feel the need to try their hardest. We've got this in the bag." The Aussie insisted.

Nodding in agreement, Butch rolled his sleeves up. "Yeah. We'll tear them apart."

A smile crossed Chase's lips. "I thought that you would be tearing apart Kingsley after what he said."

Butch's eyebrow raised instantly. "What did he say?"

"You didn't hear? Eric said to one of his teammates that Coach is an idiot to put a newbie as captain, and someone that has no real talent."

"He said _what_?" Butch's face contorted in rage. After a moment he took in a sha1rp breath and shook his head. He couldn't let his anger take control of him again, especially not tonight. "Whatever," Butch dismissed. "This isn't the time to get angry. Let's just get back out there."

With that, Butch jogged towards the fellow Falcons and joined them as they all ready to get going again. Chase's lips formed a tight line. But he wasn't worried, just frustrated. His cunning brown eyes fell onto Eric Kingsley and he smirked.

If at first you don't succeed, try again. Chase always did love that quote.

As the Falcon's goal keeper through the ball back into the playing field, everyone raced for it. Butch pushed past a hoard of Valleywood Kings and dove for the ball. Once the ball was in his possession, he darted around and looked over towards the opposing goal. He spotted one of his fellow members beside the King's goal, waving his arms to grab Butch's attention.

Butch pushed forward and got closer before kicking the ball towards the Falcon at full force. He watched intensely as the Falcon got it and turned for the goal. The boom of the score counter loomed. They had scored a goal. Butch through his arms in the air in victory. The score was even, and the game was looking up for them. The majority of the crowd went wild with cheers and screams.

Watching from the sidelines, Chase zeroed in on Butch and smiled. He really was a great ball player. Chase hated that. He turned away from his team and made his way over towards Eric Kingsley, who was doing a quick stretch while his team re-grouped.

Chase stood before Eric and smirked.

"So, Eric," Chase looked out the corner of his eye and made sure that Butch was in hearing range. This was all just too easy. Smirking, Chase continued, "How does it feel to know what a guy that just started today is playing better than you are?"

Rolling his eyes, Eric made a disgusted face. "That guy is nothing more than an uneducated delinquent with no talent in football whatsoever."

The Valleywood King captain sneered at Chase before turning around to join his team. He felt someone tap on his shoulder as soon as he took his first step.

Eric turned around and was immediately met with a punch to the face. Staggering back, Eric looked up and found a wild-eyed Butch glaring at him. The insult was one thing, but behind his back? That was something that Butch couldn't stand for. Butch watched as Eric drew back his fist and aimed for his face, but he ducked just in time to miss a blow to the nose. Within seconds, a vengeful punch had led to a full-on fight. There was kicking, scratching, pushing, head-butting. As a collect group of gasps were heard from the stands, team members rushed forward just as Butch tackled Eric to the ground and continuously attacked.

It was happening all over again.

Butch felt himself being torn from Eric by four strong hands, two on each of his arms, and they pulled him back until he was on his feet again. Butch turned himself around instantly as found Brick and Boomer staring back at them. Brick didn't look disappointed like Butch would have expected. There was a glimmer of it in his eyes, but the rest was full-on concern for Butch's safety. He opened his mouth to say something, anything, to his brothers, but a sound other than his voice stopped him.

The air grew mute after Coach Taylor blew his whistle and marched towards Butch. The vein on his head was pulsing with frustration, none of his players had ever seen Taylor this angry, even when they lost their first game last year. Taylor pointed at Butch and shook his head, his blue eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Jojo! What did I say about the violence!? That's it, you're off the team. Get out of my sight!"

Butch didn't need to be told twice. He pulled his arms free from his brother's grips and walked away, his fists still clenched, his breathing still jagged and rough. He headed straight for the first building to get something to see Mrs Sharpe. His knuckles were bruised and his eye was throbbing - having the same eye punched twice in one day by two different people? Painful.

Having just joined the two remaining Jojo brothers to see what was happening, Daisey looked over at Chase, concern filled her eyes. He looked fine. She sighed. Daisey turned to go find Buttercup to tell her what had went down when she noticed something; Chase was grinning. She tilted her head. Why would Chase be smiling? Realisation settling in, Daisey's face fell.

She shook her head. Chase wasn't getting away with this.

"Chase Alexander Royale!"

Chase turned his attention to Daisey and instantly took notice of the angered expression on her face. Hands on hips, lips in a line, the brunette glared at Chase and watched as the grin fell from his lips.

"Daisey?"

"I saw that," Daisey pointed at him as if he was on trial. "You planned this, didn't you? God, I knew that you wanted to keep your spot as Captain but _that_ was a terrible way of doing it!"

Swallowing loudly, Chase shook his head. "Daze-"

"No! I can't believe that you would sabotage your friend, all for _this_," She waved her hand around the field. "I swear to Gucci, if you don't make things right, Butch is never going to forgive you. And neither will I."

Chase watched Daisey march off back into the school and his face dropped.

"Damn."

* * *

**Butch Jojo's POV**

I pushed through the door to the second building, eager to get to my room and just avoid people for a while. It had been without a doubt the best day of my life - and then one of the worst. I knew better than to get into a fight with Eric but he deserved it. He can't just talk about me behind my back. I always did hate that. Brick didn't seem angry, which was good, because usually he would have screamed my head off. I think he just realised that I couldn't control it. It's about time he realised that.

I never really understood my anger issues. I always knew that they were there, I just didn't know that they were lethal until I fought with that Nathan guy in my last high school and we got sent to Ashville Academy. It was like this hot, bubbling rage inside of my stomach, and when it's there, I'm not in control of my actions anymore. I can't handle it or fix it, it's not my fault.

Even though Brick liked to believe that it was my fault most of the time.

When I got inside my room, I realised that I wasn't alone. My eyes fell onto the figure standing beside the window, looking out at the field, clearly waiting for me. I made my presence known by closing the door behind me and Chase turned around. His eyes were serious and his lips curved downwards. He was sorry. I didn't know how I could even tell. I didn't know when I had gotten so good at reading other people but I could see it, in his eyes and overall.

He took a step forward, prying himself from the window, and just looked at me. In that moment I remembered when I met Chase. I remembered it like it was just yesterday and the images were flashing in and out of my brain.

_..Flashback:_

_Tuesday, October 23rd, 2012_

_On his second morning of Ashville Academy, Butch Jojo had just finished showering and had changed into a clean pair of clothes. When he had gotten back to his room, he found that Boomer was no longer there. Butch assumed that he had gone off to get changed as well. He checked the time on his watch. 7:29. He still had a good half hour until he had to be at his French class. Butch walked back out of his room and made a D-turn for Brick's room. He expected Brick to be dressed and prepared already - he always did like to get a head-start every morning._

_As Butch strolled into Brick's room, he noticed someone that was definitely not his brother. This boy was taller than Brick, although not as tall as Butch himself, and he had curled golden blonde hair. Another thing that made him stand out - he wasn't wearing Brick's usual red, instead he wore a white short-sleeved shirt and black track trousers. When the boy turned around, Butch took notice of his rare brown eyes and structured jaw._

_The boy looked at him in confusion. He skimmed Butch's key features, the spiked black hair and dark green eyes, and it all made sense. He tilted his head to the side and nodded to himself._

_Pointing at Butch, the boy's eyes struck with realisation. "You're Butch."_

_"Yeah," Butch answered and his eyes lingered curiously. "And you are?"_

_"Oh, sorry," The boy spoke with a handsome Australian drawl. He grinned sheepishly at Butch. "I'm Chase. This is actually my room," He waved a hand around the clean and tidy area. "Brick was assigned this room when you guys arrived last night. He told me quite a lot about you."_

_Butch raised his eyebrow. "What did he tell you about me?"_

_Chase shrugged casually. "Just that you have black hair and green eyes, and that you spend most of your time playing football. Which, by the way, makes you seriously awesome."_

_Scanning over Chase's physique, the big arms and toned legs, Butch could easily tell that Chase played football a lot as well. It wasn't hard to tell apart an athletic person from a non-athletic person. Butch looked at Chase and furrowed his brows._

_"You play football too, I'm guessing?"_

_His ego growing ten sizes, Chase shrugged and ran a hand through his hair coyly. "I'm the captain of the Ashville Falcons, actually."_

_Butch's eyes grew wide. "Seriously?"_

_"Yes," Chase paced around the room casually. He felt excitement building up in his chest. Having been there for over a year, Chase had made a hand-full of friends at Ashville Academy, but when Brick had mentioned his brother, who played football better than anyone he had ever seen, Chase became intrigued. "We should have a game in the field some time. Maybe I can teach you some tricks."_

_"Maybe _I_ can teach_ you_ some tricks." Butch repeated confidently._

_A smirk tugged at Chase's lips. "I like you," He pointed at Butch and nodded his head. "Have you got French first thing today?"_

_Butch nodded. "Yeah, I do."_

_"Awesome. We can go together." Chase grinned and through his arm around Butch's shoulders, leading him out of the room. Butch followed, completely forgetting about Brick, who he had come in to find. "So. What do you think of Ashville?"_

_As they walked down the second hall, Butch and Chase spoke of their opinions and interests, and found that they had a lot in common besides football._

_..End Flashback._

"Butch," Chase stepped forward and I flexed my hand. Two fights in one day was bad, three would easily get me kicked out. "I just wanted to apologize-"

I held my hand out to stop him. "Coach Taylor told me that he kicked you off of the team."

Chase's face dropped in surprise. He nodded his head and shifted around uncomfortably from one foot to the next. "I went to see him after the game. I told him that I provoked you and Eric to fight and that it was all my fault," I raised my brow at him and he continued, "He told me that he would let you back on under surveillance and then he said that I wasn't on the Falcons anymore."

A long silence followed Chase's admission. When Coach Taylor told me that Chase had admitted that the entire fight was down to him, and that I was back on the team, I had been confused. From what I knew, when someone deceived another person, it stuck that way, no one ever did the right thing in the end. I guess that was how I had been brought up. My dad was an evil monkey criminal after all. No one had ever done anything selfless for me before.

It felt messed up.

I crossed my arms, not knowing what else to do with my hands, and looked at Chase. I could practically feel the curiosity sinking into my eyes. I was confused, but mostly curious. "Why did you try to get me kicked off of the team in the first place?"

Chase sighed deeply and began to pace up and down. "To be honest, I really wasn't thinking straight. Being the best at things is sort of all I have going for me right now."

My brows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Back in Australia," Chase began, his eyes staring down at the floor. I grew even more curious. Chase hardly ever talked about his life in Australia. He only ever spoke of it when he told us about how he knew Daisey. When it came to his life, he never told us anything, really. "My father didn't approve of anything that I did. I remember, I got a B for this big History test that I had worried about for weeks, and the first thing that my dad said was 'Why didn't you get an A?'. I felt like I had to be the best at anything and everything, and that kind of stuck with me."

I nodded, encouraging him to continue.

"So when I, uh, finally got promoted to captain of the Falcons, I felt like maybe he might just be proud of me, finally. And he was. When I called and told him he sounded proud, you know? So when I felt like I was about to lose that, I just panicked."

Chase stopped and looked back at me. I wasn't sure what to say. I understood the whole 'approval' thing, but I didn't agree that it was a good reason to try to get me kicked off the team. I guess I still just wasn't used to any of this stress and friendship type situations. In my old school, I did have friends, but none of them ever did anything to cross me, or did anything nice for me. It was all just a huge bundle of human emotion that I didn't understand. I guess that was why Brick insisted that we go through with this school.

Brick did always know what was best for us before me and Boomer did.

I pursed my lips and nodded. "I guess that makes sense. I mean, I've lived with Brick all of my life, I know what disapproval feels like." Chase chuckled at my comment and I felt myself laughing back. The tension was gone, which I was glad for, it was getting way too emotional and touchy-feely. Screw that. I looked at Chase and swallowed. "I told Coach to let you back on the team."

Chase's brow furrowed in confusion. "What? Why would you do that?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Even though you've been a complete idiot for the past day, you're still like the only friend I have in this place. Being on the team without you seemed pretty boring."

A wide smile lit up Chase's face. "Well thanks," He looked at me and his eyes filled with curiosity. "But wait, how did you manage to get Coach to let me back in? He was pretty pissed."

"I might have threatened not to join if you didn't get back on the team." I drawled casually.

Chase's face fell in absolute shock. His eyes were basically popping out of their sockets. "Jesus, man. You really did that?"

I smirked. "Yeah. Coach Taylor looked shocked as well. I knew that he wouldn't want to lose the two best players in the school, so it was the only way to assure that we both got a place."

"Wow," Chase swallowed loudly. He looked shocked, which didn't surprise me. He was probably confused on why I did someone to benefit him after he had been such an idiot all day. "No offence but I always thought that you were, well-"

"A jackass?" I interrupted, my face completely serious. I had been called a 'jackass' one too many times.

Chase chuckled deeply. "Well I was going to say a dingbat, but your word works too."

I suddenly stuck my hands out, a wide, mischievous grin tugging at my pried lips. "Oh by the way, I found Daisey's water-soakers in Coach's confiscation box. Want to get some payback on the girls?"

Chase grinned back. "Definitely. Let's do it!"

We laughed as we walked out of the room with revenge on our minds. With both of us on good terms, and both on the team, the Falcons were unstoppable. I couldn't wait until the next game in one month. Eric Kingsley and the rest of the Valleywood Kings weren't going to know what hit them.

* * *

**~ Urgh, my writing seems so bad in this chapter. I'm not used to writing football matches, but hopefully I'll get used to them enough that the next time I write one, it'll be more detailed instead of a jumble of words xD I hope you enjoyed it, nevertheless. ~**

**Next Chapter - (Brick's Chapter) - Brick's perfect world begins to spin when he realises that his friends are spending more time with the Utonium sisters than with him. Things get even more awkward when an evening out with Chase ends up being a lunch date with Blossom and Daisey along for the ride. Meanwhile, Buttercup and Butch aren't pleased when Holiday Sinclair gives them an unexpected form of punishment for their fight in the Gym.**

**Please review! It will only take a couple of seconds (:**

**- Allie**


	7. Once I Was Blind

**Ashville Academy**

**~ Good day, guys. Here's chapter seven - and I was excited about this one. Brick's chapter. I'm biased because Brick is my favourite character but oh well, isn't he amazing? Hope you enjoy reading, and of course, thank you all for the support. You're all angels (: ~**

**Disclaimer - I don't own the characters in this story, minus the own characters, I also don't own rights to the song lyrics.**

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* * *

Previously; _"I'm nice to people that deserve my kindness." I answered instead. With just enough insult in my tone, maybe Brick would take the hint and go do something more productive than talking to me._

_A chuckle escaped his lips. "And I don't? I've been nothing but courteous to you for the past four days."_

_"Being nice to me for four days does not make up for the five years of pain you caused when we were younger." I replied bluntly._

_"You have a point there," Brick admitted. I smiled smugly at him before turning back to my assignment. I hoped that he was done and he would leave, but he spoke again, and I don't why my stomach jumped in joy when he did. "But I'm still trying to be civil for the sake of this situation. We're going to be living a couple of doors apart for the next two years. Can't you at least cut me a little slack?"_

_I looked at him and my face hardened. "I don't owe you anything. Until I believe that you have changed, you're still considered the enemy. And I don't exchange pleasantries with my enemies." I was being harsh now. My words were pure poison and I had never felt this mean before. I don't know why being near Brick changed me so much. Maybe for once I was just acting on my anger._

_"I bet I can change your mind."_

_I rolled my eyes. "What are you going to do? Kill me with kindness?"_

_Brick's lips broke out in a smile. I caught sight of the way his dimples curved slightly when he smiled and my brain started to do turns. I had always been a sucker for dimples._

_"You're almost as smart as me." He chuckled._

XoXoXoXoXoXo

_Lost but now I am found._  
_I can see but once I was blind._  
_I was so confused as a little child,_  
_Tried to take what I could get._  
_Scared that I couldn't find,_  
_All the answers, honey._

_- Lana Del Rey, Born To Die_

Saturday, February 9th, 2013.

(Brick)

**Brick Jojo's POV**

On Saturday morning, I was eating breakfast with my brother in the common room. It was just grazing past seven in the morning which meant that the common room was almost completely empty, apart from myself, Butch and four other students. The majority of the students always slept in late on Saturdays but I never did. I liked to get a head start on the day. Butch was usually one of those who slept in, but he had been getting up extra early recently, for reasons I didn't understand. We weren't allowed outside until 10 a.m on Saturdays and Sundays so that meant that he wasn't just wanting to get up earlier to get some football practice in. However I wasn't complaining. I didn't mind the company.

I was in the middle of reading 'Every You, Every Me' by David Levithan, and I was reading in silence while I ate my breakfast. I had read the book twice before but it had been a while since the last time, so I decided to refresh my mind of the story. As my eyes scanned the page I was reading, I wondered if Blossom had ever read this particular book before. She must have. David Levithan is also her favourite author. I didn't know why I wondered what she thought of it. I guess after living with Butch and Boomer - who never read - I just craved some real, intellectual discussion. But I couldn't get that from Blossom.

Tearing my eyes from my book, I glanced over at Butch who was sitting in front of me. He was sitting on a chair that he had pulled up, with a plate filled with bacon sitting on his lap. I watched with a disgusted face as he stuffed several slices of bacon into his mouth without even taking a breath. He had zero table manners. We technically weren't sitting at a table but he could at least eat one slice at a time, and you know, chew. I was slowly losing my appetite just watching Butch eat. I couldn't even brave down my last piece of toast.

Nose scrunching in distaste, my eyes met Butch's. "How can you eat so much bacon?"

Butch looked up from his plate and blinked at me. He looked so lazy at this time of the morning. His hair was only naturally spiked, therefore most of the front was flat and messy and hanging low to cover most of his eye sight. He had thrown on a dark green, straight sleeved shirt, a pair of black track trousers, and what appeared to be un-matching socks. He looked like he had literally just rolled out of bed - which for all I knew, he had - and yet I could still spy some female students staring at him, whispering and giggling.

I fought off an eye roll. Girls always threw themselves at Butch, and like the idiot he was, he went along with it. He just loved the attention. But if these girls were smart, they would realise that my brother isn't a tie-down type of guy. He's only had one relationship that lasted longer than a minute and I don't really care to think about it.

"Bacon is the good of the Gods," Butch replied dramatically. He didn't even finish chewing before speaking. Gross. "I could eat way more than this, you know that."

I smiled. Butch was so typical. "Shouldn't the newest captain of the Falcons be eating better? You know, to stay in shape."

Butch waved a piece of bacon at me. "I jog every morning. A little bacon fat is nothing."

"How do you jog every morning? We aren't even allowed out on weekdays."

"Uh," I narrowed my eyes. That was definitely not a good answer. "Well I mean that I jog about the hall, of course."

"You jog in the hall?" I deadpanned.

"Gotta keep the amazing bod perfect, right?"

This time I couldn't fight the eye roll. _Bod?_ "You get stranger every day, Butch."

Butch pointed his finger at me and shook his head. "I think you'll find that it's our other brother that gets stranger every day."

I pouted my lips and nodded in agreement. "Speaking of Boomer, did he tell you why he didn't want to have breakfast with us?"

I was curious, to say the least. Over the last couple of days, Boomer had been even more distant than usual. He came to the football game to support Butch, even though Boomer hated all sports, although I felt like he just wanted to see the look on Chase's face when Butch took his place as captain. Boomer never liked Chase, for whatever reason, I have no idea. But the game was the only time I had really spoken to him in days.

It was almost like he keeping something from us. Sometimes I really did miss the way he used to be. He was out-spoken and confident and funny, and then all of a sudden, he was completely withdrawn. It was like he realised that people couldn't always be trusted. I always wondered why he became the way that he is now, but something tells me that it wasn't subconscious, I think that something happened to him that neither Butch nor myself know about, something that changed his view in life. Either way, it was getting worse now, and I hated not knowing why.

"Not really?" Butch shrugged as he shoved another piece of bacon into his mouth. I just hoped that he would finish chewing before speaking again. "He just said that he wanted to go to the back garden to be on his own."

He did not finish chewing.

"That's all he said?"

Butch nodded. He leaned back in the plush chair, setting his hands behind his head. "I don't see why he hangs out there all the time, no one ever goes there."

"That's the point," I said as I looked down at my book. I had had this conversation with Butch many times and he didn't seem to understand that Boomer likes his space and his privacy. At times I wished that Boomer could be more open, but I didn't complain like Butch did. He didn't have the right to complain about how our brother communicates. "Boomer likes to be alone." I added quietly.

"You got that right."

My curiosity got the better of me and I looked back up at Butch. "Although I wonder why he's been avoiding us more than usual lately. I mean, he doesn't usually blow us off this much."

"Exactly," Butch nodded in agreement. "We live together, it's not like it would kill him to spend five minutes with us."

Taking a bite of my toast, I nodded back. "I've noticed that he's become more distant since the Utoniums moved in."

Butch rolled his green eyes. "He's got a pathetic, school-boy crush on his counterpart. Isn't it obvious?"

I didn't really have to think about it. While to the untrained eye it would seem like Boomer had a crush on Bubbles, I didn't think so, or I just couldn't believe it. The idea of my brother dating Bubbles Utonium was absurd enough being said. Boomer wasn't the type to fall head-over-heels for a girl that he knew it was wrong to feel that way for. The Utonium's were a thing of the past, and Boomer hated to think of the past. I couldn't see any reason for him to like one of them in that way.

"I don't think so," I said. "Blossom, Buttercup and Bubbles all think that we're still evil. He wouldn't be able to get close enough to Bubbles to develop any sort of feelings towards her."

Butch shook his head. "Not true," I raised an eyebrow at him and willed him to continue. "I was at the nurse's office after my fight with Eric Kingsley. Mrs Sharpe told me that one of the new girls helped Boomer inside after his ankle fractured. A short_ blonde_ with _blue_ eyes. It was his counterpart, obviously."

I swallowed loudly. Boomer had been spending time with a Utonium? I guess that would explain his distance, but it didn't add up. None of it did.

"That's too strange. He would have mentioned it."

"The evidence is all there, Brick. He's head-over-heels for Utonium number 3." Butch said as he stuffed more bacon into his mouth.

I shrugged my shoulders, while in my head trying to calculate Boomer's relationship with Bubbles. "Well maybe he is but that doesn't explain his behaviour. The Utoniums don't trust us, it's not as if he's meeting up with Bubbles in the Utopia."

"Whatever," Butch shook his head casually. "I still think that there's something going on between them. But we should stop talking about this, the Utoniums are probably spying on us as we speak."

Ah, the spying. I had caught Blossom's pink eyes on me far too often to be a coincidence. They must have been doing reconnaissance, trying to figure out what we are up to. Apparently trust is a hard thing to come by these days. Although I don't blame them. The last that they saw of us, we were evil, and we disappeared and they didn't know what happened or where we went.

One day they would, and maybe they would believe us, finally.

"You've noticed that too?" I asked in an amused tone.

"It's hard not to," Butch rolled his eyes again. "What are we supposed to do to prove that we're not here to do something criminal?"

"I don't know. They'll see it for themselves eventually."

Butch's lips tugged at a grin. "Even with spying and stuff, it's been pretty hilarious hanging out with Buttercup."

I held back a chuckle. "You two haven't been hanging out, Butch. She attacked you with a water-soaker, you brought her back from a panic attack in an elevator and then you two had a fight during gum class. I wouldn't call that 'hanging out',"

"Same difference." Butch shrugged and ate his last slice of bacon. How he wasn't clutching his stomach in pain from all of the bacon, I don't know. "I actually have to go see her now," He grinned boyishly. "We have a date."

"Not a date," I pointed at him. "You're going to see Mrs Sinclair to receive punishment for your fight."

"Again, same difference."

I smiled at Butch and shook my head. "You and Buttercup are never going to happen."

Butch's gaze narrowed at me. "Is that a challenge?"

"No. I just mean that she hates you. No matter what you do, you'll never get Buttercup to agree to go on a date with you."

"Challenge accepted!"

_Oh, God._

This wasn't going to end well for anyone involved.

I blinked. "Butch, it wasn't a challen-"

"Mark my words!" Butch spoke dramatically as he rose to his feet and put his fist to the air. "By the end of this month, Buttercup Utonium will be begging to date me!"

Shaking my head, I closed my eyes and sighed. I heard Butch run out of the room, confidence trailing behind him as he went, and then he was completely out of sight and heading for Buttercup Utonium. I rested my head on my palm and let out a muffled groan.

"This is going to be a _long_ month." I muttered to myself.

* * *

**Regular POV**

Holiday Sinclair's office was not what Buttercup had expected.

She imagined a lot of bright colours and portraits of rainbows and smiles, maybe even a candy machine in the corner. That was what she assumed, considering Holiday's bright, cheerful demeanor. Although that was far from what she saw when she stepped into the office with Butch by her side. It wasn't bright and happy. It was sort of..terrifying, even for Buttercup's standards.

The walls were a midnight blue, so dark that they almost looked black, and the floors were made up of a genuine, expensive feeling ink black carpet. A tall, dark mahogany desk sat in the near centre of the room. It was large and held a lot of drawers and handles, containing God knows what. Instead of some pleasant pictures of Holiday's illegitimate children in fancy frames, the desk consisted of a tall coffee mug, files encased in big brown folders all stacked on top of each other, a big-rimmed book covered in thick dust marks and a laptop sitting closed.

Light was banished from the room using dark, floor-length curtains, making the entire room feel as depressing as it looked. On the right side of the room sat a massive silver cabinet with many drawers, holding the personal files of each and every student. And on the left, there was a black leather couch. A small square table stood directly on the left side of the couch, an ash-covered ashtray sat alone on top of it. Holiday appeared to be a smoker; a feature that definitely, like this office, did not fit her personality in the least.

Swallowing loudly, Buttercup turned to look at Butch. He was staring around the room like she had been, an unnerved expression on his face. At least they agreed on something: This was just plain weird. Apparently Butch had hoped that Holiday Sinclair was going to be her usually lovely, happy-go-lucky self and let them off with a warning, but apparently Holiday's social demeanor was far different from her work demeanor.

Buttercup's eyes fell onto Butch's left eye. She found herself interested by the black bruising around his green orb. When they were young, and they would fight each other at least three times each week, it took Buttercup throwing chairs and tables at him to so much as leave a bruise of that merit, and she had managed it by a mere unexpected punch to the face. Such an action barely scratched Butch when he was still thriving with a supernatural body and power. As they lost their powers, their bodies began to function more like a human body, which left them all open to vulnerability, both physically and mentally.

Seeing that Butch was on the same level playing field as her now made Buttercup feel depressed. He was just as normal as she was, and he could feel pain that once felt like nothing. So much had changed in the last few years. Buttercup didn't like change.

"Ah, there you two are," A voice called out from behind them.

Buttercup and Butch turned around and spotted Holiday Sinclair standing at the door. Her thin, blush pink lips were crooked, neither smiling nor frowning, and her vibrant green eyes held seriousness. She always managed to look beautiful without try, almost as if it were genetic, which it very well could have been. Holiday walked in between Buttercup and Butch and headed towards her desk.

She took a seat on her generously large, black leather office chair. The chair was fancy, with soft foam padding and a reclining tube holding it high. Holiday pointed towards the two smaller, less comfortable wooden chairs placed in front of her desk and motioned for the two students to sit down.

"Take a seat," Holiday spoke in her naturally deep voice. "We have much to discuss."

Buttercup and Butch shared a glance. This was going to be a long afternoon. They shuffled forward and each took a seat in front of Holiday. The Headmistress flipped her long, golden blonde hair, as she skimmed over an open file on her desk. She re-read the document for a silent moment before glancing back up at the two green-eyed students.

"So Mr Taylor informed me of your disagreement during Gym class at ten-twenty five yesterday. I have Ben Taylor's side of the story written here but can one of you explain your side of what happened?" Holiday's usual bright tone was serious and business-like.

"She started it." Butch answered immediately, pointing an accusatory finger at the girl sat beside him.

"You were the one that threatened to tell people about the elevator thing, which by the way,_ never_ happened!" Buttercup hissed back.

"I didn't actually say I would tell people though." Butch replied matter-of-factly.

"You implied it!"

"Calm down," Holiday butted in, silencing the pair with a wave of her hand. She sighed deeply before crossing her arms on the desk top. "Look, we simply cannot accept that kind of violent behaviour," She turned to Buttercup. "Miss Utonium, I explained the rules to you on your first night. I had a feeling that you might cause trouble but this is your first week. This is not a vacation, you cannot behave this way."

Buttercup's eyes narrowed and she sat up. She might have looked threatening, although Holiday barely blinked. "First of all, I know that this isn't a vacation. If I was going to go on a vacation I would go some place where it doesn't rain every single day and where the people weren't so uptight," She heard Butch snort a laugh in amusement at her comment but she ignored him. "Secondly, can you get to part where you give us detention so I can get back to my room?"

Holiday let out a sigh of aggravation. "I'm not going to give you detention."

Buttercup blinked.

Butch blinked.

They shared a confused glance before turning to look back at the tall blond. Neither were expecting to hear that, not after seeing her office, or as Buttercup now liked to call it; The death zone.

"Your not?" Butch asked in his deep voice, a hint of surprise mixed in his tone.

"No," Holiday shook her head. "Detention is far too nice of a punishment for this. I'm setting you both on cleaning duty for the next week. No exceptions."

Butch swallowed. He hadn't cleaned anything in his entire life. "Cleaning duty?" He repeated. "You're kiddin' us, right?"

Holiday pursed her lips tightly together. "No. The pair of you will be in charge of cleaning the common room all of this week. If either of you get into anymore trouble whatsoever, I'll make it two weeks. Do you understand?"

"This is BS," Buttercup commented carefully. Swearing to the Headmistress probably wasn't the best idea. "I don't want to spend my free time cleaning with this idiot."

Butch narrowed his eyes at Buttercup.

Holiday's face remained calm and collected. "Well you should have thought of that before you punched Mr Jojo in the face."

"He was asking for it!"

"Like _hell_ I was!"

"That's enough!" Holiday butted in once again. She rose from her seat in an instant, both of her palms flat on the desk. "Go back to your rooms. I'll collect you in the morning to get you started."

"But-"

"No more arguing," The blond cut Buttercup off. "Leave." She commanded, her eyes burning bright in frustration.

Buttercup let out an animalistic growl. She officially hated Holiday Sinclair more than anyone in the world. No, she took it back. Holiday was second, behind Butch Jojo, the person she now had to stay glued to for every morning this week. Buttercup was ready to defend herself but even she knew when she was beat. She had no authority here. She wasn't a hero, she wasn't praised or allowed to act how she wanted, she was seen as human and that was how she would always be seen. Buttercup's heart sunk in her chest.

Collecting her bearings, Buttercup pushed out of her chair and stormed towards the door. She basically tore the door from its hinges to get out, as far away from both Holiday and Butch as she could. When she made her way towards the hall, she heard the door close again, and she could feel Butch behind her. Her heart raced in anger. This was all his fault. She could feel him moving, practically seeing his arrogant face smirking smugly at her.

The thought made her skin burn.

"Well," Butch began as he came up from behind Buttercup. "It looks like we're cleaning buddies."

Buttercup spun around. "Don't make me punch you again, Jojo."

Butch smirked back at her. "I'll see you tomorrow morning, Sunshine."

As he walked off down the hall, all that Buttercup could think about was that this was going to be a very, very long week.

* * *

Brick stepped into the common room just as the sky began to clear up outside. His stomach was grumbling in protest, angry that he had barely eaten anything at breakfast apart from a slighty burnt slice of toast. He didn't particularly want to head down to the dining room. They never had anything that Brick liked, or that anyone liked for that matter. Apart from Butch, who liked everything. His eyes scanned the room for Chase Royale. He knew that Chase would be up for going out to grab some decent lunch at The Sweet & Sour. Chase loved their French toast just as much as Brick loved their Cappuccino.

Eventually Brick found Chase, and he wasn't alone. His stomach growled harder when his eyes fell onto Blossom Utonium. His stomach wanted food. Brick wanted to talk to his counterpart. He didn't know why he wanted to talk to her, maybe he just missed having someone as smart as him to converse with. Maybe he wanted someone he could have a real conversation with. His stomach growled again. Blossom wasn't the objective right now.

Chase was leaning over one of the pool tables, a long, light brown cue in his hand. His face was in contorted in total concentration as she aimed for his next goal, and if he got it, he would beat Daisey, who was stood at the other end of the table. Daisey was casually watching him while still maintaining a back-and-forth chat with Blossom. They all looked like they were having fun together. Brick almost didn't want to disrupt him.

He hated that his friends were also friends with a girl that hated him.

They were _his_ friends first.

Brick groaned. Since when did he become so childish?

His red eyes tore from Blossom and he planned to leave. He could ask Boomer to go to lunch with him - that is, if he could find him. Boomer was apparently not anywhere to be seen. Brick took a step towards the door when a female Australian accent filled his ears.

"Captain Genius!" Brick frowned. He had actually started to miss Daisey's annoying habit of never calling him by his name. She spent too much time with the Utonium sisters these days. "Over here!" She beckoned.

Turning back to face them, Brick's eyes immediately met with Blossoms. She held his gaze for a fraction of a second before turning away. Brick's heart kicked in response. He hated that someone hated him so much. Blossom thought that he was still evil. She didn't know that he had morals, that he was a decent guy, and she acted like she didn't want to know. Brick wasn't sure why Blossom's dislike made such an effect on him.

He didn't want to be Blossom's friend.

Right?

Right.

Pulling back his pool cue and straightening his posture, Chase's brown eyes scanned for his roommate. When Chase found Brick standing by the door, he smiled at him. "Brick, man, why are you just standing there? Get yourself over here!"

Brick didn't think, he just walked over. His eyes were glued to Chase with each passing step. He was trying not to look at Blossom, because then the awkward tension would surface, and Brick hated tension. In a single moment of weakness he felt his eyes shift to Blossom. She was looking back at him, her wise pink eyes hardening. Yes, she definitely hated him.

As he stood before the trio, Brick turned back to look at Chase. "I was trying to find you to see if you wanted to go out and get lunch but I can see that you're busy."

"Nah, don't be ridiculous," Chase waved his free hand. "That sounds like a brilliant idea, mate," He turned to look at the girls. "Why don't all four of us go out to the Sweet and Sour for lunch?"

Brick pursed his lips.

Blossom blinked in response.

"I'm in," Daisey spoke up, raising her cue-bearing hand. "I feel like I haven't eaten in days."

His lips twitching a smile, Chase raised his thin eyebrow at the fellow Australian. "Daze, you were eating chips like twenty minutes ago."

"Exactly, it's been _so_ long." Daisey moaned melodramatically.

Chase sighed but maintained his smile. "Well, you're in then," The blonde turned to look at Blossom. "What about you, Blossom?"

Her face and body freezing, Blossom didn't say anything. There was no way that she was going out to lunch with an ex enemy - or an enemy, depending if Brick really was not to be trusted. She looked at Brick, trying to capture his reaction to the thought of having lunch with her, and Brick simply raised her eyebrow at her. The ball was clearly in her court.

The silence dragged on and Blossom felt someone tugging at her arm. Her gaze turned to Daisey, who's big blue eyes were batting, long eyelashes bobbing up and down.

"Come on, Blossy," Daisey begged. "I need some female company today."

Blossom let out a sigh and looked at Brick. If she said yes, she would be subject to a full evening in Brick's company, although if she said no, Brick would think that she was scared to be around him. Blossom was a lot of things, but she didn't fear things easily, especially not people.

She thought back on her conversation with Buttercup surrounding the Jojo brothers. Blossom's eyes were supposed to be glued to Brick Jojo for as long as she could. She was supposed to spy on him, and what better way than to be with him all day.

Already regretting her decision, Blossom nodded and turned her attention back to Daisey. "Fine, I'll come."

Daisey clapped her hands together. "Fabulous! Let's get going. I could literally eat a horse right about now."

As the Australian dragged Blossom away from the pool table by her upper-arm, Chase leaned into Brick. "Is it too late to un-invite her?"

Chuckling, Brick shook his head. "Come on."

With that, the four of them left, and the awkward tension followed.

* * *

Later that morning, Buttercup was fuming.

She hated everything about Ashville Academy. Except for Daisey. And the swimming pool. Everything else, she despised with a hot, burning passion. She thought back on her trip to Holiday Sinclair's office - for the third time in twelve minutes - and her skin tingled furiously. In a way, she was smart enough to understand that physical violence wasn't a 'detention' type of crime. She knew that there was a chance that the evil she-witch - Sinclair's new nickname - was going to have to take more action, but cleaning duty? And with Butch Jojo?

Holiday clearly didn't realise that putting both Buttercup and Butch inside a room, alone, for an hour, with blunt cleaning objects was the worst idea ever. Only one was going to come out of the situation with their limbs still attached.

Feeling the need to have some pleasant conversation, Buttercup stormed up the stairs of the second building and headed for room 47. She hadn't been able to find Blossom downstairs, and she had checked everywhere. She first headed to the library, surprisingly Blossom was not there. Next she searched the common room. Then she hunted the entire second building - the bathroom, her's and Daisey's room, even Chase Royale's room, which was insane because Blossom wouldn't step foot into Brick Jojo's room, but she had to check everywhere.

There was no sign of her in all of Ashville Academy. Which sucked, because Buttercup had wanted to go outside with both of her sisters and enjoy the power of freedom some more.

As she walked inside room 47, her green eyes scanned the small bedroom. No Blossom. Of course. She did spot Bubbles, though, sat on her bed, with her pajama clad legs crossed, and a soft, easy smile tugging at her pried lips as she stared down at the mobile phone in her hands.

"Who are you texting?" Buttercup asked from beside the door.

"Huh?" Bubbles mumbled and looked up. The smile on her lips faded. "Oh, I'm just talking to Robin. She's telling me all about her latest date with Mitch."

Buttercup mentally gagged. "Boring."

Rolling her eyes, Bubbles leaned back against the wall beside her bed. She set down her phone onto her white bed sheets. "It's cute," She commented, her smile once again present. "Are you telling me that you're not dying for a relationship like theirs?"

"I'm not the 'relationship' type of girl."

She was both lying and not lying. Buttercup had been in a relationship before. Only once. But that didn't mean that she had only ever been intimate with one person. She prefered the fun type of intimacy, with no strings, no urgency. She would see a boy that she liked, she would act like any girl would, and she would kiss, then she would leave.

No strings. No problem.

Buttercup had never craved relationships like those in books or movies. She didn't see the point in investing in a commitment. At her age, relationships never lasted, only a lucky few. That was what Buttercup had always believed and followed by. She didn't need a man, and that was what made her special, different.

Pouting her lips playfully, Bubbles waved her hand. "You're only saying that because you've only had one relationship."

"Yeah," Buttercup nodded sharply. She didn't want to talk about this. Talking led to feeling, and feelings usually sucked. "It wasn't my thing. If I was to be with another guy, there would be no romantic kisses and valentines dates and stuff. That's just gross."

Bubbles frowned. Buttercup was so stubborn sometimes.

"Admit it, you loved having a boyfriend."

Rolling her eyes, Buttercup shook her head. "Bubbs, the only guy that I've ever had an actual relationship with is now dating my best friend. Relationships aren't forever."

The air thinned and Buttercup couldn't breathe. She really, really didn't want to talk about her love life. She never did. Her love-life was supposed to be non-existant. That was how she wanted it.

Bubbles' eyes grew serious and her lips pursed.

"You loved Mitch."

"I did not." Buttercup scoffed.

"You _loved_ him." Bubbles shot back.

"I was thirteen years old." Buttercup swallowed loudly and looked away. "I didn't know what love was."

It was no secret to anyone that Buttercup wasn't a believer of romance and love-at-first-sight, but she had loved before, even though she would never admit it. From the age of thirteen, she had grown dangerously close to Mitch Mitchelson, her friend and her partner in crime. She found herself craving his presence, and the sound of his voice.

They did begin dating, much to the surprise of, well, everyone. And while they bickered, and broke up with each other countless times, they always found their way back to each other at the end of the day. Their on-off relationship lasted for eight months until they realised that they were just kidding themselves.  
They didn't belong to one another.

Mitch remained friends with Buttercup, and strangely enough, they were stronger than ever. And before he knew it, Mitch realised who he really did belong to, and it wasn't Buttercup. While she wouldn't admit it, Buttercup was slightly hurt when she first caught Mitch looking Robin the same way that he used to look at her, but she pushed the hurt away.

She didn't hurt. And she didn't feel. It was simple.

Bubbles didn't seem pleased with Buttercup's answer. "You can deny loving Mitch, but you forget who you're talking to. I have a sixth sense for these types of things, remember?"

Buttercup rolled her eyes. "Yes, you're all-knowing and perceptive, I know."

"Exacty. I read people better than anyone we've ever met. And I know that you loved Mitch, far before you started dating and afterwards as well."

"I-" Buttercup sighed. She wasn't going to talk about Mitch or love, that was not what she had come up to discuss. "I've officially had enough of this conversation. I came up here to ask if you wanted to go out today, considering you missed all the fun yesterday."

Dropping the subject of love, Bubbles sunk deeper into her warm, comfy white quilt. "I'm still not feeling very well."

Her eyebrow raised, Buttercup studied Bubbles silently. Her eyes were bright, full of life, and her nose wasn't red nor were her cheeks. She appeared in perfect condition. "You look fine."

"I have a stomach ache," Bubbles explained. She brought her quilt tight around her and lay her head onto her comfortable pillow. "I think that I should just stay in bed. You should go out though, find Blossom and go back to that café she was telling me about this morning."

Buttercup frowned. "I would but I can't find her, or Daisey or Chase for that matter. I think they're already out."

"She didn't tell you that she was going out?" Bubbles blinked her sweet blue eyes. "That's weird."

Nodding in agreement, a soft chuckle escaped Buttercup's pried lips. "Yeah. It's like she's got something to hide."

Bubbles laughed back. "What would Blossom have to hide? It's not like she's hanging out with a Jojo or something."

"Yeah. She probably just couldn't find me."

"Well I'm sorry that I can't hang out with you," Bubbles said softly. She pulled her covers tighter around herself and shuddered from the cold. "Maybe if I'm feeling better later."

Buttercup sighed in disappointment. "You're still coming out with us tomorrow though, right? There's still some places that I want to check out."

The blonde smiled. "Of course I will. I've been reading up on the best places to hang out in Ashville. Theres this bowling alley that apparently has the best nachos in all of Kansas." Bubbles winked. Buttercup did love her nachos.

Her lips pulling a grin, Buttercup bounced in excitement. "That sounds awesome. Oh! And we can catch that new movie as well, Night Slasher 4!"

Bubbles frowned and shuddered for a completely different reason. "You know that I hate scary movies."

"It's not that scary."

"It's about a serial killer that murders a full house of sorority sisters to avenge his sister's mysterious death," Bubbles raised her eyebrow. "_How_ is that not scary?"

Pursing her lips into a tight line, Buttercup crossed the room further and took a seat on the edge of Bubbles' bed.

"You can cover your eyes at those parts." Buttercup pointed out.

Bubbles suppressed a moan. "Okay, we'll go see your movie. But we're bringing Daisey along too, at least we can discuss important things like the latest Vogue while the man on the screen goes on a killing spree."

"Perfect," Buttercup grinned. She had wanted to see this film for weeks. There was something about scary films that excited Buttercup. She was never scared, but she was always thrilled. "And we'll invite Rich Boy too. He told me that he's a huge fan of horror movies. I bet he'll be dying to see this."

Bubbles smiled back. "I can't wait."

"Neither can I," Buttercup replied gleefully. "This movie is supposed to be the goriest thing ever!"

Rolling her made-up eyes, Bubbles shook her head. "I'm more excited about bowling and spending time with our new friends than about seeing people being dismembered."

"You're so boring, Bubbles."

"Am not!"

"Are too."

"I'm not boring!"

Without giving her sister time to respond, Bubbles pulled herself up and snatched up the pillow she was once resting her head on. She swatted at the pillow, aiming and trashing it against Buttercup's face. When she retracted her arm and caught Buttercup's expression, she curled her lip. Buttercup looked mad. Really, really mad.

Green eyes narrowed, Buttercup grabbed the pillow from Bubbles' hands and raised it above her own head.

"Oh, it's on, sis!"

There was no time for Bubbles to react or retreat as Buttercup swung the pillow at her. Bubbles quickly took hold of her second cushion and shot back, a laugh rolling from the tip of her tongue. Not caring about how childish they were acting, Buttercup and Bubbles continuously trashed pillows against each other's faces and burst into hysterics upon hysterics.

A sigh leaving her lips, Bubbles fell onto her bed in exhaustion. "I think we broke my pillows."

Buttercup slowly nodded in agreement before collapsing onto the bed as well, trying to catch her breath and failing.

"Got you!" Bubbles suddenly exclaimed as she smacked Buttercup with her cushion once more.

And once again, it was on.

* * *

From the second that Blossom had arrived at L'Aigre Doux, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was doing something wrong. Her heart raced faster each time that she thought of what her sisters would say if they knew that she was out to lunch with Brick, who no one could trust.

One out of three tables had been filled, while Blossom and Daisey sat beside each other on one end of the couch space. While they talked among themselves, Brick and Chase were ordering, and Blossom was nervous. No matter how hard Blossom tried to pay attention to the Australian beside her, her gaze continued to flicker towards Brick.

She knew that she was supposed to keep an eye on him, but this wasn't about spying anymore, she just found herself unable to look away. She was confused. And she wasn't sure what to do. For days she had known the plan; Spy on them, figure out why they are in Ashville Academy, and if something is off with them. But so far, Blossom hated to admit, they all seemed normal. The teachers loved Brick. Boomer was kept to himself. Even Butch hadn't done anything villain worthy - besides getting into a fight with Buttercup, although she definitely started it, and Eric Kingsley, but Eric was just a regular boy. What would any of them gain from fighting him?

Blossom hated that she was starting to believe their words. And if they got proof that Brick and his brothers were really reformed, then they would have to live with them, and Blossom wasn't sure which seemed more easy. None of it was easy. Seeing them again was too complicated.

For the five minutes that Blossom and Daisey had been sitting in their booth at the Sweet & Sour, Blossom had been trying desperately to find a way out, or an excuse of sorts. She didn't want to have lunch with Brick, but she also didn't have a good enough excuse to get out of it now that she had let herself in the situation.

In conclusion; Blossom was screwed.

A sudden friction coming from Daisey caused Blossom to snap back into reality.

"Bloss, why do you look so tense?" The brunette raised her thin eyebrow at Blossom before her gaze fell onto Blossom's clothes. Her eyes dulled instantly. "And what's with that shirt?" She pointed at the silk white T-shirt that Blossom was sporting.

Blossom looked down at the shirt and wore a look of confusion. "What's wrong with it?"

"It doesn't go with those earrings."

"I didnt know that matching a shirt with earrings was necessary."

A wide smile tugged at Daisey's lips. "Well that's why you're lucky to have me in your life now. We can go shirt shopping tomorrow."

Following Daisey's words, an idea struck in Blossom's mind like lightning. "Why don't we go do that now? I'm sure that Chase and Brick will understand if we just leave. Right now." Blossom mentally slapped herself. She so wasn't being smooth.

"I know that Chase has a massive ego and that Captain Genius is annoying but why are you so eager to get away from them?" Daisey looked thoughtful for a brief moment before letting her mouth drop open. "O-M-G. You and Captain Genius used to date, didn't you!?"

Blossom's face formed a grimace at the thought of dating Brick Jojo. The thought of holding him. The thought of loving him. The thought of kissing him. Her heart kicked in response. Blossom swallowed the bile in her throat. Why did the thought of kissing Brick feel so..pleasant? She had kissed him before, albeit on the cheek, but the thought of grabbing onto him and connecting in a passionate kiss for some reason warmed her heart. Blossom mentally shook her head.

Hormones were evil little things.

Clearing her throat, Blossom shook her head. "No, we didn't date."

Daisey pouted her lips. She rested her chin on her hand, propped up by the table in front of them. "You know, you never told me how you two really know each other. You said that you used to live in the same town as him but like, look at you. There's tension and awkwardness and all bad things. If you two didn't use to suck face then what is it?"

Suppressing another grimace at Daisey's 'suck face' comment, and ignoring the rush of warmth in her stomach, Blossom's brain began to calculate at full speed. She was amazing at coming up with answers on the spot, but her mind was busy swimming in the bittersweet thoughts of Brick Jojo. She couldn't tell Daisey the truth. She couldn't let Daisey know that she hadn't always been human.

"We were just..never friends," Blossom said carefully. She reveled in the fact that she at least wasn't lying. "We never liked each other or spent time with one another."

Daisey cocked an eyebrow. "That's hard to believe. You and him have like a million things in common," The Aussie held back a comment about Blossom and Brick's odd shared obsession of coloured contacts and strange names. She didn't want to offend. "Also, even if he is annoying, he's kind of awesome. He let me steal some of his answers in class once. After that day, I decided that he was Mayor of Awesomeville."

Blossom felt herself smile before she banished it. "Brick and I just have a complicated past."

Still not lying. This was going well.

The brunette's face contorted in curiosity. "Complicated how?"

Blossom tensed up. Daisey asked far too many questions.

"It's hard to explain," Blossom drawled in a quiet voice. "But we didn't date, just to make that clear."

She could feel herself sweating from the pressure. Even her fully functioning brain was having trouble trying to come up with so many plausible answers. Her body was still heating up from the thought of being close to Brick and she couldn't stop it. Her mind was filled with images of holding him and feeling his hot breath on her skin. It was dangerous to think such things, and Blossom was reveling in it.

She couldn't breathe. She needed to get Brick out of her mind. Of course, that was impossible, considering when her eyes flickered towards the counter, she could see Brick watching her and Daisey casually. Their eyes met, and Blossom's skin tingled.

His eyes were so pretty.

Blossom shook her head. No, Brick Jojo's eyes were _not_ pretty. She blinked away from his sight and turned her attention back to Daisey. She could still feel him watching her from afar, and she chose to ignore it.

Daisey tilted her head at Blossom. "So you two are like Chase and I? All yelling and arguing and not knowing where you stand?"

She thought about it for a moment. They had yet to yell at each other, there was no real arguments, and she knew exactly where they stood; strictly business, no friendship or emotion allowed. Although if she told Daisey that, there would be more questions, and so much more insinuations that would make Blossom's head fill with images that definitely was not allowed.

"I, uh, guess that could describe it." Blossom nodded slowly, careful to keep her eyes stuck onto Daisey's face, and away from Brick's pretty eyes.

"Well then you have my support!" Daisey announced loudly. She placed a friendly hand on Blossom's shoulder and smiled widely, showing off her pearly white teeth. "Whenever things get too awkward or heated, I'll distract you with conversation. And I definitely want to talk about those shoes."

Blossom blinked. "You don't like my shoes either?"

Daisey pulled a face. "They don't match your shirt," She held her hand up with attitude as if Blossom should have already known that. Her lips twisted into a line as she stared at the T-shirt in question. "And speaking of that shirt, it's so getting burned when we get back to school."

Blossom saw no point in arguing with Daisey about her choice of attire, instead she tugged at the bottom of her hem and kissed goodbye to her T-shirt.

"You know, it's not the end of the world if my clothes don't match with my earrings and so on."

"What world do you live in?"

Breathing out a laugh, Blossom rolled her expressive eyes. She had to admit that she was having fun chatting with Daisey, now that the conversation had switched from her counterpart and to clothing choices. Her joy was short-lived, though, as the next thing she knew, Brick and Chase were making their way towards the table.

She had almost forgotten that Brick was even in the room. _Excellent._

Chase was the first to the table, struggling to hold a mug filled with cappuccino, a glass of Cola, a muffin and a plate of french toast with only two hands. Daisey laughed under her breath as Chase wrestled to get everything onto the table without spilling anything. It occurred to Blossom that maybe she should have helped them get everything - but then she remembered why she didn't. She would have had to stand beside Brick. And that was just plain awkward.

"Thank you," Blossom said to Chase as the blonde handed her the cup of coffee and the Banana Nut muffin she had ordered. She looked down at the cup with cautious eyes. "I've actually never tried a cappuccino before."

"They're surprisingly nice," Chase commented as he took a seat on the other couch, opposite from Daisey. He placed his glass and plate in front of him before glancing over at Brick, who was also struggling to carry everything. "Cappuccino is Brick's favourite, ain't that right?"

Brick looked up from the cup that he was placing onto the table and his eyes met Blossom's. Her heart kicked again. Why did his eyes have to be so gorgeous?

"Yeah. They're good." Brick replied quickly and bluntly.

Realising the tension, Daisey instantly jumped in to end the suffering. "So, Captain Genius, I've been _dying_ to ask you something."

Brick raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"When are you going to pass me my freakin' Iced tea?" While Chase and Blossom stifled a laugh, Brick rolled his eyes. He took his seat beside Chase and passed Daisey her tall, cold glass of Iced tea, and the plate of cheesecake she had been dying to eat all day. Brick had ordered the same thing - substituting the Iced tea for a cappuccino. "Really though," Daisey carried on. "I do have something to ask you."

Brick didn't ask what it was, he just stared at her with a dull expression on his face.

Daisey leaned forward on the table and her mischievous blue eyes danced in curiousity. "Blossom tells me that you two used to live in the same town?"

Suddenly interested in the conversation, Blossom's head flung to the side as she shot Daisey a wide-eyed glare, but Daisey wasn't over yet. "Did you two go to the same school?"

Taking a glance towards Blossom, Brick kept his game face on. "No, we just knew of each other."

"How did you meet?" Daisey persisted.

Blossom decided to cut in before Brick could say something that would get them caught out. She still didn't trust him, she certainly wasn't about to trust him to speak for her. "We, um, we met in a library."

Brick cocked a brow at his counterpart. Good answer.

"I'm so unsurprised by that," Daisey rolled her made-up eyes but she held her smile intact. "So you met at a library? Did you both reach for the same book and bam! Romantic touching?"

The sudden silence was filled with the sound of Blossom gulping. Her gaze cut towards Brick and she prayed that her brain would work faster. She had never been so loss for words before. Usually if she had to come up with a clever lie, she could do it on the spot, but apparently not when Brick was there, staring at her with his red eyes, making her insides turn to mush.

Seeing no other reasonable explanation, Blossom concluded that she was going physically insane. That had to be the only way. There was no other reason as to why she her brain wasn't working well, or why she was imagining what it would be like to be held in Brick's strong, amazing arms.

Blossom mentally nodded. She was definitely going crazy.

"No.." The red-head cleared her throat. _Think, think, think_. "I..um, I accidentally bumped into Brick and he dropped the book that he was checking out, so I picked it up for him and then I left," She looked at Brick from across the table. His eyes were lit with amusement and what looked like pride. Blossom wanted to smack him, or throw her cappuccino on him, which ever was easier. "We just kept running into each other around town and that's, um, how we already knew each other."

When Blossom looked at Brick again, she watched him mouth the word, "Smooth." And she scowled. She was_ so_ smooth.

Chase leaned forward and spoke up. "So you knew Brick when he was a kid?" He waited for a nod of confirmation before continuing. "Was he as annoyingly smart as he is now?"

Brick narrowed his eyes at his roommate.

"Yes, he was very smart," Pink eyes met red once again, as if their eyes were drawn to each other, never able to lose sight for longer than a moment. Blossom found herself lost in a daze. "And he was courageous, short-tempered, confident," She took a long breath and remembered who she was talking about. "But like he said, we only knew of each other. We were never friends."

"Well at least you two are friends now." Daisey said, followed by a clapping of her hands.

"What?" Blossom's eyes lit up in confusion.

Daisey smiled brightly. "You're having lunch together and hanging out. That's friendship, isn't it?"

Blossom and Brick shared a glance from across the table, both thinking the exact same thing; Where they friends?

* * *

10:49 p.m.

**Brick Jojo's POV**

When I got back to Ashville Academy, I hadn't felt the same as when I had left. Blossom had been on my mind all day and night. She was tormenting me. Just seeing her face reminded me of when I was young, and evil, and terrible. And her eyes still held that judgement that they used to. For some reason, I could feel that she was starting to believe me, call it the counterpart bond, letting me know what she would think, but I call it instincts.

She doesn't look at me the way that she did when she first arrived. While her eyes held judgement, they also held pity. I wanted Blossom to know what my life was like after Townsville, how I went somewhere new and I tried desperately to redeem myself for my sins. Although I had a feeling that she wouldn't listen. I knew that she wanted to, she wanted to know everything, but her mind wouldn't allow it. She was too smart to allow herself to listen to an old enemy.

That I was proud of her for. She was still so smart and brave. She hadn't changed.

I had listened to her speak about us at The Sweet & Sour, how she made up our past, how she lost herself for a moment and complimented me and looked into my eyes with so much urgency. And ever since we had gotten back and she had left me, I thought constantly of what Daisey had said. When she insinuated that we were friends, I realised that the thought didn't repulse me. I think I wanted it to be true, because she is so like me, and she has some quality to her that pulls me in.

So I looked for. I searched the halls until I found myself at the common room. When I got inside, I looked around for her, and I saw her sitting on one of the red couches. Her sisters weren't around, neither were my frien- _our_ friends. She was reading a book, David Levithan, no doubt. She was smiling as she read in silence and my stomach hurt at the sight. Never had someone looked so peaceful.

Without thinking of how wrong it was, I walked slowly towards her. There was only two other people in the room, surprisingly, and they were at the back on the computers, so I knew that I could say what I had to say without spilling my secret. That I was grateful for, because there was something that I really needed to say to her.

When I reached her, she heard my movement and looked up from her book. Her face was blank for a moment, but then I saw something flash in her eyes, something that might have resembled relief, had she not scowled at me afterwards.

"What do you want?"

"To settle this." I stated firmly.

Blossom blinked. "I don't understand?"

I took a breath and ignored the reluctant pain in my chest. I had to say this. "I told you my reasons for leaving Townsville, and yet you continue to spy on me, trying to prove that I'm here to hurt someone or to steal something," The air was heating up between us. I threw my arms in the air in exasperation. "Chase and Daisey think that we're_ actually_ friends, which is stupid because you've been completely ignorant to me since you got here. I mean-" I stopped and shook my head in confusion. Why did this have to be so hard? "It is stupid, isn't it?"

Blossom looked stunned and I felt my stomach twist and turn. I wasn't sure why I was so frustrated by the whole situation, but I was, for the first time in a long time, I felt angry and confused and helpless. There was so much emotion in her expression that I couldn't process it all. She frowned at me and blinked her eyes rapidly before finally setting her book down on the couch and standing up to face me fully.

"It's not stupid, Brick. Chase and Daisey don't know about our past so they see no reason that we wouldn't be friends," Her face grew serious. "But I know of our past, and that is why I refuse to be _anything_ to you."

My eyes hardened instantly. "Why won't you even consider the possibility that I have changed?"

"Because it's too damn difficult!" Blossom bit out loudly. Her gaze filled with desperation. "All my life, I have always trusted the wrong people. I can't trust you not to..be who you were," I felt my heart beat rapidly. She didn't trust me. "And why should you care? What is it to you if I don't believe in you?"

"I.." My mouth had apparently ran out of words, because I couldn't answer her. I just looked at her with the same desperation and urgency that she was showing me. Blossom swallowed loudly before shaking her head and speaking again.

"I may not be a superhero anymore, but that doesn't mean I will sit back and let my guard down. If you came here for a reason, I will stop you."

I jumped in to defend myself. "I did come here for a reason, Blossom! I came here because my brother - my_ human_ brother - got into a fight and I entered it to help him. My brothers and I are here because we made a mistake and now we're paying for it, the human way," She blinked at me, surprised by my words. "Tell me this, if I really was here to do something hideous, why would I try so hard to get you to believe my reformation? Why would I bother to try to reach out to you?"

Blossom was deadly silent, so much that I could hear the rough breathing coming from her mouth. I watched her eyes carefully. More realisation, more pity, more worry and care, more human emotion that I craved and didn't understand too well.

She took a step towards me and I felt the need to take a step back, but I didn't, I looked her dead-on and waited to here what she had to say. She licked her lips and once she had, I couldn't move my sight from said lips. It was only when she spoke that our eyes met again.

"There is so much that I don't understand about you." She whispered softly.

"Then let me tell you," I insisted, taking another step towards her. "Let me tell you everything that I endured after leaving Townsville, everything that I did to fix who I was," I lowered my voice and sighed, almost reaching out a wary hand. "Let me in."

The tension thickened around us until I blinked and Blossom had moved to my side. I turned to look at her but she kept her back to me.

"I can't," She muttered. I watched as she took another step. "I won't be naive, I won't trust someone who once tried to end my life," She looked at me from across her shoulder and frowned. "But I'm sorry. And I _do_ believe you. I just can't act on that."

And just like that, she was walking away, and I was left with nothing but shock in my eyes and pain in my stomach. Every bone in my body was aching at the sudden distance from her, and I didn't understand why.

But she believed in me.

She finally believed.

* * *

**~ Oh the pain. Don't you just love the reds? Well, here the chapter ends, and we've got to see Brick feeling some genuine human emotions that he doesn't quite understand, yet. You'll have to wait until his next chapter to see what he does about these emotions! ~**

**Next Chapter - (Buttercup's Chapter) Buttercup and Butch begin their first day of cleaning duty. Blossom bonds with Daisey during a shopping trip. Meanwhile, Buttercup's plan for a fun night out with her sisters, Chase and Daisey turns into chaos when she finds out that Chase has invited the Jojo brothers along.**

**Please review! It won't take long (:**

**- Allie**


	8. Showdown

**Ashville Academy**

**~ Hello all of my wonderful readers. Hope you're all doing well! We've had a based chapter for each character and now we're back to the start, so get ready for Buttercup's second chapter, and this one is quite exciting. It's time for cleaning duty, ladies and gentlemen ~**

**Disclaimer - I own absolutely _nothing_ apart from Daisey McCoy and Chase Royale. I take _no_ claim for the song lyrics in this chapter or the other characters.**

**VV Here's some review replies! VV**

**HidingBehindACurtain - Glad you're liking the interaction between Brick and Blossom. You'll get to see more interaction in chapter ten. Thank you for reading and reviewing ^_^**

**Jeannette-8o - You got that right! They're just so adorable xD Thanks for reading!**

**Nelly - Aw thank you ^_^ Haha! Hope you like the chapter, and thank you for reading (:**

**Flowers6024 - Aww! You have no idea how happy your review made me ^_^ Thank you, angel.**

**cococandy21 - Hey (: Glad you love it! Thank you for reading and reviewing!**

**hero-madness123 - Thank you! And you are very welcome!**

**insane4iero - Hello, indeed they are! Thank you for reading ^_^**

**Dragonfire138 - Aww, thanks (: Very sweet!**

**RoseQuartz1 - Hahaha, hey angel! Glad you're liking the story. Oh, you'll have to wait until the next chapter to see what's happening with the blues xD Thanks for reading!**

* * *

Previously; _Holiday let out a sigh of aggravation. "I'm not going to give you detention."_

_Buttercup blinked._

_Butch blinked._

_They shared a confused glance before turning to look back at the tall blond. Neither were expecting to hear that, not after seeing her office, or as Buttercup now liked to call it; The death zone._

_"Your not?" Butch asked in his deep voice, a hint of surprise mixed in his tone._

_"No," Holiday shook her head. "Detention is far too nice of a punishment for this. I'm setting you both on cleaning duty for the next week. No exceptions."_

_Butch swallowed. He hadn't cleaned anything in his entire life. "Cleaning duty?" He repeated. "You're kiddin' us, right?" _

_Holiday pursed her lips tightly together. "No. The pair of you will be in charge of cleaning the common room all of this week. If either of you get into anymore trouble whatsoever, I'll make it two weeks. Do you understand?"_

_"This is BS," Buttercup commented carefully. Swearing to the Headmistress probably wasn't the best idea. "I don't want to spend my free time cleaning with this idiot."_

_Butch narrowed his eyes at Buttercup._

_Holiday's face remained calm and collected. "Well you should have thought of that before you punched Mr Jojo in the face."_

_"He was asking for it!"_

_"Like hell I was!"_

_"That's enough!" Holiday butted in once again. She rose from her seat in an instant, both of her palms flat on the desk. "Go back to your rooms. I'll collect you in the morning to get you started."_

_"But-"_

_"No more arguing," The blond cut Buttercup off. "Leave." She commanded, her eyes burning bright in frustration._

XoXoXoXoXoXoXoXoXoXoXo

_Baby, go in, pull my hair and just skins,_  
_what I'm wearing, let's sin, do you dare it?_  
_It's about to go down._  
_We gon' have a showdown._  
_I'll give you the rundown._  
_Handle me with friction._  
_Take me with conviction._  
_Make me your addiction._

_- Knife Party ft Krewella, Fire Hive_

Sunday, February 10th, 2013. 5:48 a.m.

(Buttercup)

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

I rubbed at my tired eyes and let out a sigh. It had been a seriously long time since I had been awake before six in the morning, and I was not amused. I had been peacefully sleeping in my warm, brilliant bed, when I was shook awake by Holiday freaking Sinclair. She took me outside of my room and told me that it was time for cleaning duty with Butch.

He didn't look happy about it either, which made me feel slightly better, of course.

When I asked Holiday why she had woken me up at five in the morning - Not cool, Sinclair - she told me that it had to be this early, because it was the only time that the common room was completely empty and free for cleaning. I guess that made sense, but I still wasn't amused.

Even though I was cleaning a dirt-riddled room in my lime green tank top and starry pajama bottoms, I still didn't regret punching Butch for even a second. After our brawl in the gym hall, I noticed that I had less pent-up anger, and life was more pleasant. I had gotten my rage out, after having it build up for days and I wouldn't regret that. But that being said, cleaning in my pajamas was not cool. Holiday Sinclair was so not cool.

With a damp yellow sponge in one hand and a bottle filled with tap water in the other, I cleaned down the surface of the computer tables. I had never really cleaned anything before, and I have to say, it sucked. The room was clouded with the smell of air freshener and the sound of the vacuum cleaner that Butch was using to sort out the crimson carpet. Butch and I hadn't spoken a single word to each other since Holiday brought us down to the room forty minutes earlier. I wasn't really complaining, I just thought that Butch would at least try to annoy me a little.

Butch was evil like that.

My hands scrubbed the computer tables and I had to hold back my disgust. The table was so dusty and mucky and..sticky. Gross. I had to endure this each day for a week, at five in the morning, with Butch Jojo. It was official. I was in my own personal Hell. I assumed that Butch hadn't taken the news well either, but then again, how would I know. He wasn't talking to me. And I had zero idea why that annoyed me so much.

I heard the noisy vacuum stop as Butch turned it off and I sighed in relief. The dreadful noise had finally ended and allowed silence. I swatted at my forehead - Sweat. Double gross - before I got started on wiping down the screens of the computers.

Just when I was starting to think that Butch wasn't going to speak to me at all during out first cleaning session, I heard his voice break the muteness.

"Why do you get to do all the easy stuff?" His voice held annoyance. Perfect. I instantly turned around to look at him - almost too quickly. My eyes grew narrow at the sight of his arrogant face. "I freaking hate vacuuming."

I rolled my eyes at his complaint. "I'm doing the easy stuff because this is all your fault."

Butch pointed an accusatory finger at me. "Actually, this is _your_ fault."

"No. It's not."

"You punched me."

"You provoked me."

"You could have just walked away."

"You could have done the same."

Butch and I stopped talking immediately and just looked at each other from across the common room in silence.

He looked half-dead. His hair wasn't spiked, at least not yet, instead it was a giant mop of straight ink black hair, falling down to shield one of his eyes and the rest sticking out at seriously weird angles. The shirt clinging to his body was a really dark green, and it showed off way too much of his muscle than it needed to. His trousers were steel grey trackies that hung low around his waist. He wore track trousers to bed? Oh, lord.

I probably didn't look like an angel myself but I couldn't help judge Butch's disheveled look.

As Butch and I looked at each other, my green eyes staring deep into Butch's matching ones, my heart kicked in excitement. I realised something that should have been so clear. I actually wanted this.

I noticed from the moment that Butch spoke that I felt relieved. I had wanted him to speak to me. I wanted to argue with him, I don't know why, maybe I was still angry with him and I was just looking to pick a fight. It was clear that at some point Butch and I would have a full-blown showdown, and it would be a lot more violent and serious than pulling hair in the gym hall. I think that a small part of me was aching for that showdown. I missed feeling strong and brave and in change.

I wanted so desperately for Butch to be evil so that I could stop pretending to be a normal, teenage human girl and just be me; Buttercup Utonium, the strongest and most fierce of the Powerpuff girls. That was who I was born to be and I wanted it back. I wanted to have a reason to be that person again.

And maybe that was wrong. But I officially didn't care. I wasn't created to go to high school and gossip and wear lipstick. I was created to be a fighter. And I wanted to fight.

All of a sudden, Butch's defensive expression dropped right from his face. He looked less half-dead now that his face was relaxed. I kept my game-face on and squeezed the sponge in my hand to stop me from hurling it at him. Butch furrowed his brows and slowly he shook his head at me.

"What are we doing?" He asked in a half confused, half conflicted tone.

I blinked at him. "Well, we were cleaning, and now because of you, we're talking."

Butch crossed his arms and I could see his muscles much clearer. He didn't have that much arm-muscle when we were younger. On anyone but Butch it would be considered quite attractive. But it was Butch. He was in no way attractive to me. Tripple-gross.

"Seriously, what are we doing, Utonium?" Butch threw his arms in the air in exasperation and my eyes followed. "All of this hostility, the fighting and arguing?"

Licking at my dry lips, I squinted my eyes at him. "I'm not going to play nice with you just because we're being forced to clean the common room together," I shook my head firmly. "I still think that you're evil."

But he already knew that.

"Well, I'm not."

"I don't believe you." I shot back instantly.

Butch rolled his dark green eyes. "I _hate_ you."

I smirked back at him. "I hate you too, Jojo."

"I'm going to prove that I've changed, you know?" His playful eyes grew serious and I honestly thought that I could start choking at the thick tension in the air. I had never seen Butch look so confident. I almost forgot how alike we were. "And then I'm going to have the pleasure of saying 'I told you so', over and over."

He didn't intimidate me.

I wasn't going to believe him just because of his seriousness and his words. I wasn't as naïve as Bubbles, in fact, I wasn't naive at all. That was what made us different, and made me smarter. Everything about the Jojo brothers screamed evil. They were created to be the end of my sisters and I, and our town. Even if I'm not a Powerpuff girl anymore and I'm living in Kansas, that didn't mean that I couldn't protect Ashville from the likes of Butch.

Butch was still evil. I was sure of it. He had to be. I needed him to be.

"That's not going to happen." My voice sounded a lot more confident than his did.

"It will," Butch shot back. "And I'll love every second of it."

In an instant I turned back around to face the computers and return to my cleaning. I could feel his eyes burning holes on the back of my head. I might have been the one that wanted to start the argument, but Butch obviously didn't want to be the one to end it. This counterpart bond, whatever it was, was starting to annoy the heck out of me. I didn't want to be like Butch Jojo. He was everything that I despised in the world.

"Definitely not going to happen." I muttered, loud enough for Butch to hear, loud enough to end the argument.

"We'll see." He responded before I heard the vacuum start-up again.

I promised Blossom to give them a month, but that probably wasn't going to happen. I had to prove that Butch and his brothers were up to something soon, so that I could beat their behinds right out of Ashville.

I needed them gone. I wasn't sure how much longer I could be around Butch without strangling him. And oh God, I _really_ wanted to strange him.

* * *

**Regular POV**

"This is perfect!"

Blossom tore her eyes from the pair of jeans she had been studying and looked over at Daisey. They had been shopping at Riot, apparently the best clothing store in all of Ashville, according to Daisey, for about thirty minutes, and had yet to find anything that Blossom liked. Well, that wasn't true. Blossom had seen a blush pink skirt with white horizontal stripes that she considered buying, but Daisey wouldn't let her. To Daisey, it wasn't trendy enough. Nothing that Blossom had picked had been trendy enough in the Australian's eyes.

Examining the material in Daisey's hands, Blossom's eyes squinted. Daisey had been all over the shop, hunting out all different types of clothes and forcing Blossom to try them on in the small, cubicle changing rooms on each floor. She had picked out various skirts that were far too short, shirts covered in faux fur and over-the-top sequence, brown leather cow-boy boots and at least ten pair of high heels, all of which Blossom turned down. All of this crazy fashion wasn't Blossom's thing. She kept it simple, yet stylish, leaving everything to the imagination. Daisey's tastes were far different.

Blossom pursed her lips tightly. "Daisey, that-" She pointed towards the material hanging from Daisey's hands. "-Is a dress."

Daisey grinned and flung the long, pink dress around. "Yeah, isn't it gorgeous?"

"I thought we were looking for shirts and trousers?"

"We are, but who says that you can't have a stunning dress as well?" Daisey asked casually, not taking the hint in Blossom's tone. Her dark blue eyes were busy running up and down the silky material of the dress to notice the look on Blossom's face.

"You want me to wear a floor-length dress to class? _Really?_"

Daisey rolled her made-up eyes. "Fine. No dress." She hung the dress back on to the rack where it came from before turning fully to face Blossom, who was standing beside one of the changing booths. "You're a very picky shopper, Bloss."

Blossom smiled back at her. "Let's just keep looking. There's got to be something."

Bouncing over towards Blossom, her long mahogany hair swaying from side to side, Daisey stuck her finger in the air, perfectly manicured fingernails gleaming in the light. "Don't you worry your little red head off. As your personal shopper, I will not rest until I find you something brilliant, sexy and fabulous!"

A laugh of sheer amusement escaped from Blossom's lips. "I appreciate your enthusiasm."

"Well," Daisey started, her eyes skimming over a pair of patterned jeans. "this is what friends do, isn't it? Plus, I couldn't let you walk around another day in those clothes. You need something new, something fresh, something-" Daisey clicked her fingers and tried to think of the perfect word.

"Something Kansas?" Blossom offered with a smile.

Daisey grinned back. "Exactly! You dress like a small-town villager. It's time to Kansas your wardrobe up!"

Bursting with shopping adrenaline, Daisey pushed past Blossom and headed towards the back of the store to continue her search. Blossom followed her with light steps, glancing at the various clothing racks as she passed them by. She realised something strange. She was actually having fun. The idea of shopping had never excited Blossom before, but she was actually having a good time, just goofing around with Daisey and trying on absurd clothes. When she walked around Riot, shopping with her friend, she felt like a normal teenager.

It both thrilled and excited her.

Blossom looked around some more. Riot looked like any regular clothing store from the outside, but once you got inside, you were subject to a land of clothes and colours and floors. The outside of the shop was tall and built with two large-view windows. With a black coating, it stood out, and the sign above the double doors held the words 'Riot' flashing back and forth from black to red. It appeared smaller as viewed from outside but that was far from the case.

On the first floor there was a mass of male clothing, an entire section dedicated just to hats alone. It took a short escalator ride to get to the second floor, which seemed far bigger, and held the woman's clothes. The third floor held children's clothes from ages five to twelve, and even had a back-to-school section for those that went to public schools, rather than boarding schools. And on the final floor at the top, there was many sections dedicated to different designers, which was where Blossom and Daisey were.

Daisey liked designer clothes.

Blossom wasn't sure what she liked anymore.

Her wise pink eyes were skimming past assorted pairs of jeans when she heard Daisey's voice again, sounding as confident and victorious as ever.

"Oh, oh! Blossom! I've got it!"

Blossom looked over towards the sound of Daisey's voice and watched as the tall Aussie made her way over with a spring in her step and a blouse in her hand. A blouse. Now she was talking. Daisey waved the material in the air for Blossom to see. Blossom looked at it and her eyes lit up. It was so..her, yet so unlike anything she had ever dared to wear before.

The blouse was sharp and precise, similar looking to an office work shirt, with a large collar and small golden buttons trailing down to the bottom. The colour was a dark salmon pink, darker than Blossom was used to, a few shades softer than hot pink. With wide rolled up sleeves, the shirt was both fun, classy, a typical rodeo-style with a loose tied bottom. All in all, it was so flashy and entertaining, in a good way, and nothing like Blossom had ever worn before.

Blossom blinked in surprise. "It's so..beautiful."

Daisey grinned and waved the blouse in her hands. "It's _so_ Elle Harris!"

"Huh?"

"Seriously?" The brunette's mouth dropped open and practically hit the floor. "You don't know who_ the_ Elle Harris is? She's, like, the most famous fashion designer in all of Kansas city! Her clothes are to die for," She waved the blouse in Blossom's face once more. "As you can see."

"She is very good." Blossom said as she reached out and held the blouse for herself. Her fingers grazed the soft, delicate fabric. She was shocked that she found something so confident as beautiful as she did. "I'd never usually wear something so out-there."

Daisey, hands on hips, nodded. "Well what did I say? We need to get some Kansas into your small-town girl style, so get into that changing room and try that stunning shirt on right this second!"

"Okay, okay, I'll go!" Blossom chuckled vibrantly.

Grinning in victory, Daisey pointed a beige fingernail towards Blossom's ear. "Oh, and take those earings off! They won't go with it!"

Blossom rolled her eyes but smiled. She quickly pulled her silver stud earings off of her ears and placed them into the pocket of her jeans before rushing towards the nearest changing booth. As soon as the material was on her skin, making her eyes stand out and highlighting her curves, Blossom never wanted to take it off. She realised as she stared back at her own eyes in the mirror, that her attitude had become more care-free since her chat with Buttercup, and now her look was more out-there.

Ashville was already changing her.

And she was loving it.

* * *

15:02

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

That evening, I was sitting inside the common room, on one of the large red couches near the back corner. I had spent five minutes of the computer, checking the showing times for Night Slasher 4; the movie that I had wanted to see for weeks, and now I was planning my evening out with Chase, who was sat beside me on the sofa.

"So," I turned to Chase. "We'll leave at five and make it to the movie theatre for half five."

Beside me, Chase nodded in agreement. "We'll have a good fifteen minutes until it starts, so we don't have to hurry."

"Wait," Bubbles piped up from the floor in front of us. She had been sitting there, legs crossed, painting her nails a sky blue colour and minding her own business while I planned the night out. That didn't surprise me. Bubbles hated effort when it came to planning. "Did you ask Daisey if she's coming?"

"Yeah," I told her and held up my phone. "I texted her a couple of minutes ago."

Chase's brows furrowed. "Where is Daisey?"

I pursed my lips. "She's still shopping with Blossom. Apparently, according to the text that she sent me, it takes more than an hour to find wearable clothes."

Rolling his eyes, Chase chuckled. "I wouldn't expect them to be back any time soon. It took Daisey three hours to find the perfect 'first day' pair of jeans when we got back from Australia."

I watched as Bubbles' blue eyes sparkled. "What was it like? You know, when you got to go home before this year started?"

On my first night in Ashville Academy, Daisey had told me about her trip back home. Near the end of the year, all students that had families to return to would go back home for eight weeks before coming back to start off the next year. It made me think about what might happen when my sisters and I go back to Townsville.

We didn't have a father anymore, so of course we would be staying with Robin or Mitch, and that would be amazing, seeing them again, but it wasn't enough. I wanted to live there again, I wanted my dad to be alive, I wanted to still be a superhero. I just wished that things hadn't changed like they had.

It wasn't fair.

"It was pretty awesome," I tuned back into the conversation and watched as Chase grinned at his memory. "Everyone back home was so excited to see us back, even if it was just for two months."

"I can't wait until I get to go back to Townsville." Bubbles' voice held excitement - which I found stupid. She shouldn't be getting excited about something that is so far away.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, we still have nine whole months until we get to go back."

Her smile fell. "At least I have something to look forward to, Miss Negative."

Chase chuckled. "'Miss Negative', I like that."

My eyes grew narrow. "I'm not negative."

"Yes," Bubbles nodded. "You are."

"Whatever," I crossed my arms and looked away from both of them. I wasn't negative. I was one hundred percent positive. "I hate you all."

"You're right, we were totally wrong," Chase smiled at me, his voice reeking of sarcasm. "You're the complete opposite of negative."

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes again. "Can we get back to talking about our plans, please?"

Bubbles grinned. "I'm so excited to go outside! Is Ashville beautiful? Should I bring my camera? Oh, what am I saying, of course I'm bringing my camera."

"You're going to love the bowling alley," Chase grinned at her. "It's called 'Lucky Strikes'. I went there once last year with Butch and we had the best time."

_Excellent._

I had gone hours without hearing that name and Chase just had to ruin that for me.

Crossing my arms over my chest, I scowled deeply. "Don't say that name."

He raised his eyebrow. "Why on earth do you hate Butch so much? I mean, I heard about the fight in the gym hall, but what made you hate him?"

"She just thinks that he's annoying." Bubbles piped up instantly before I could get a word out. She knew that I ran the risk of saying something wrong. I wasn't sure whether to be impressed or insulted.

"That's an understatement." I muttered.

"He's actually a really awesome guy," Chase said to me. I looked at him with narrowed eyes. He really didn't know who he was talking about. "Once you get to know him." He finished.

I pursed my lips tightly. "Well you don't know him as well as we do, so you can't understand why I hate him so badly."

"Well help me understand, mate. What could the Jojo's have done that was so terrible? Didn't you guys know them when you were all little kids? What could three kids do that's so bad?"

My eyes stuck to Chase for a moment before I glanced towards Bubbles. She was attempting to shoot me that look of warning that Blossom always used on us, but she was failing miserably at it. Bubbles never was good at looking threatening, what with her height and Barbie-doll-face. Well, unless anyone ever made fun of her height to her face, then she was pretty damn scary.

To be honest, I could have gone on for hours to Chase about what made me hate Butch Jojo and his brothers. I could have listed hundreds of reasons. But as of the moment that I walked into Ashville Academy, I stopped being a Powerpuff girl, and I was just a regular human, and this normal teenager had zero reasons to hate them, so I couldn't say a thing.

It was so damn frustrating not being able to talk smack about Butch Jojo.

I looked back at Chase and tried to act nonchalant. "Butch is a jerk, okay? Let's just leave it at that."

Chase looked hesitant, but a look of surrender crossed his brown eyes and he shrugged his shoulders. "Alrighty then," He drawled. "We'll leave it at that."

After he spoke, an uncomfortable silence, a thick tension, filled the air and I pouted my lips. Bubbles resumed her nail-painting and Chase started to whistle to himself. And I have to say - it was the most awkward silence in _all_ of my life.

* * *

**Regular POV**

An hour later, Blossom and Daisey had finally finished shopping. They made their way out of Riot with their bags in hand and a hole in their purses. Blossom was holding a single bag, slung over her left arm, containing the blouse that she had bought, including a couple of pairs of tights and a pair of Buckley beaded, crystal hoop earrings that Dasiey insisted that she just had to buy. Whereas Daisey had two bags, filled with various summer dresses -all of which Blossom found ridiculous considering Daisey lived in Kansas- and some fun shirts. The Aussie even bought a pair of blue, acid wash jeans, fit with rips in them, for Buttercup. While Daisey didn't care for Buttercup's sence of style, she wasn't one to judge.

The sun had made a short appearance as Blossom and Daisey strolled down the side-walk and headed home with their clothes. The roads were busy with fancy cars, all trying to surpass each other, and people on bicycles, just trying to not get hit by the vehicles. All around there was people going into shops and out for lunch. Apparently Sunday was a busy day. Ashville was weird.

As they walked, Daisey reached into the pocket of her jean jacket and dug around for her mobile phone. Once retrieved, she held it up to see and checked for messages. Daisey blinked her blue eyes when she saw the messages appearing on her screen.

"Wow." Daisey muttered.

Turning to look at Daisey, Blossom raised her eyebrow. "What?"

"We were in there for ages! I've got four text messages from Buttercup and two from Bubbles."

"What do they say?"

Daisey's eyes skimmed the screen of her Samsung Galaxy Note 2. "They all say the same thing, that we're coming out with them tonight."

Blossom furrowed her brows. "Did we agree to that?"

Smiling, Daisey shook her head. "I don't think that we have a choice."

"Alright, then," The red-head chuckled. "Did they at least tell you where we are going?"

Daisey glanced at her phone once more and squinted her ocean blue eyes. "The movies, then bowling." She looked back at Blossom and shrugged. "It sounds like an interesting night. Oh, you can wear your new shirt!"

As the Aussie clapped her hands in excitement, Blossom pursed her lips. "I'm not so sure. It's a bit..flashy for a bowling alley."

"That's the point," Daisey said slowly as if Blossom was an idiot. "We're flashing up your style, remember?"

"I guess so," Blossom shrugged. "I'm just not sure if I can walk around in something with giant golden buttons."

Daisey held an accusatory finger out. "No going back. You agreed to buy it, you can't back out now. Plus, you promised to be more care-free to Butters, so you may as well dress the part."

"How do you know what I said to Buttercup?" Blossom raised her thin eyebrow.

"I know everything."

Blossom laughed softly. "I do want to keep my promise to her, of course I do, it's just a big change. I mean, what would you do if someone asked you to act as though you didn't care for fashion?"

Daisey pouted her lips in thought. "I would probably punch them."

Smiling, Blossom said, "Exactly," She sighed to herself and slowed down her walking pace. "I'm used to being seen as uptight because it's just who I am. I'm a mature person. If I begin to act as Buttercup does, who knows what will become of me."

The brunette rolled her eyes but kept her smile intact. "Did anyone ever tell you that you read way too much into things?"

Blossom pursed her lips. "Once or twice."

"Look, you don't have to change everything about yourself," Daisey pointed towards the bag hanging from Blossom's arm. "Just stick on the blouse, don't yell at Butters so much, don't think about consequences too often, just live as though you're in the moment."

Looking ahead in thought, Blossom nodded slowly. "I'll try."

A grin lit up Daisey's face. "Excellent. My work here is done."

Blossom breathed out a laugh. "Well you did help boost my confidence with the blouse, so your work was very good."

Daisey's grin widened and she threw her arm around Blossom's shoulders as they neared Ashville Academy. The school was in the distance, clear enough to see fellow students making their way inside or out.

"Now for your next challenge."

"Next challenge?" Blossom repeated while raising an eyebrow.

"You have to sit in my room for a full hour while I go into the bathroom and try on all of my new clothes, and you can't try to clean anything while you're there."

Blossom frowned. "That's impossible. Your room is where dirt and mess go to die."

"Nu-uh," Daisey chuckled loudly. "If you want to conquer your perfectionism, you have to learn left-control."

"Okay, I'll do it." Blossom sighed reluctantly.

"Awesome! Now, I also want to have a look in your-"

"Wardrobe?"

Daisey pursed her lips tightly "Maybe."

Laughing in amusement, Blossom nodded. "Just don't throw anything out without asking me first."

"Nope," Daisey shook her head, long mahogany hair cascading around her shoulders. "Blossy Utonium, I adore you, but that is something that I just _cannot_ promise."

Blossom rolled her bright pink eyes as her and Daisey walked through the Ashville Academy gates. But as she did, she felt reflected. The thought of being more carefree worried Blossom of what she could become, how much she could change, but Blossom was always aware of how much she loved thrills.

And at the thought of being more like her sisters, Blossom was definitely thrilled.

* * *

19:13 p.m.

**Buttercup Utonium's POV**

After two hours of gory mayhem and Bubbles hiding behind the seats in front of us, we had all left the theatre and were walking down the street, heading for Lucky Strikes, the local bowling alley, to have a game or two before going home. The usual Kansas rain was back on, mildly damping our hair and clothes. Luckily I was wearing the one leather jacket I owned that had a hood.

While my sisters and Daisey were silent as they walked, Chase and I were in hysterics. We hadn't been able to stop giggling since we left the theatre. Our arms were linked as we reminisced about our favourite moments in Night Slasher 4; The movie had just seen.

"How good was the part where Terry found Emma's body in the cafeteria?" I nudged at Chase's side and laughed as I remembered how Chase had burst out laughing during that scene. I was one of those people who found laughter infectious. Each time he laughed, I just had to join in.

Chase tugged at my arm as he doubled over. "Oh that was bloody brilliant, literally!"

I chuckled even harder, which I didn't find possible. "Oh, oh! And the part where Anne and Michelle fell down the elevator shaft? Even_ I_ got scared!"

"So did I!" Chase exclaimed. "It was _seriously_ vile."

We burst into hysterics, barely able to walk without doubling over. I couldn't understand why I was laughing so much, and I hadn't stopped smiling in hours. I was in a good mood, that was for sure. It had been so long since I had been on a night out with friends. Back in Townsville, Robin never liked going out, she was more of the staying in and watching romance movies type of girl. And Mitch, well he went wherever Robin went.

From my other side, I could hear Daisey sighing deeply. I turned to look at her. She was tugging at the collar of her lilac shirt and rolling her eyes at us.

"You two are terrible." Daisey remarked.

From beside Daisey, Blossom nodded. "While Emma was literally being dismembered, you two were sitting there laughing. How is dismemberment funny?"

I pouted at them playfully. "Leave us alone, we were trying to have fun."

"I don't understand how you can laugh during a scary movie." Bubbles piped up from the other side of Blossom.

Chase grinned at Bubbles. "You're only saying that because you were hiding in the corner. You couldn't even watch it, let alone laugh."

Bubbles frowned. "I don't like scary movies, okay?"

"No kidding," I shot back. "You went to the bathroom like eight times, and you didn't even come back on the last time."

While we had all been enjoying the movie, Bubbles had constantly excused herself to go to the bathroom, coincidentally at the scariest parts of the movie. When the movie ended, all of us left the theatre room and found Bubbles standing in the hall, waiting for us to come out.

I always knew that Bubbles hated scary movies, but she could have at least just covered her eyes.

Daisey flipped her long, brunette hair and pointed a beige fingernail at Chase and I. "Let's please forget about what psychopaths Buttercup and Chase are so we can have fun at Lucky Strikes."

My eyes narrowed dangerously at Daisey. "I'm _not_ a psycho."

Chase leaned in towards me, close enough for me to smell the Calvin Klein aftershave on his clothes. "We might be a little psycho."

I smiled back at him. "Are we still going to see Grim 2 next week? We can wait until really scary parts come up and then kick people's chairs to scare them again."

"Of course," Chase chuckled. "It's going to be hilarious!"

Slight joy in her tone, Blossom said, "I'm glad that you are both getting along."

I nodded. "We are. I've even agreed to stop calling him 'Rich Boy',"

Rich Boy was a name that I had invented for Chase when we first met. It was hard not to label him as rich when he was wearing designer clothes that Bubbles couldn't resist drooling over, and the Rolex on his wrist was just over-kill.

"And I'm very appreciative of that." Chase said.

I continued walking at a normal pace, enjoying the fact that I had stopped laughing long enough to breathe properly. The rain was getting heavier by the minute and my leather jacket was starting to look more leather-y then when we had left Ashville Academy. I absolutely hated rain. But I wouldn't let the Kansas weather stop me from going out.

Just when my shoes were starting to flood with water, Bubbles' voice rang out in the silence.

"Is this Lucky Strikes?" Bubbles nudged Daisey on the shoulder.

Daisey stopped walking and looked up at where my sister was pointing to. "Yup," She nodded and brushed the damp hair out of her eyes. "We're here."

We all looked up at the large building to our right. The building itself was sleek and black with an obvious shine that made it stand out. The double-doors were a thick, dark red, and had a silver railing as a doorknob. It was so flashy that my eyes started to hurt. There was two big windows on either side of the door, taking up about half of the building's height, and allowed us to peer inside to see even more flash. The sign was quite cool though. The letters spelling 'Lucky Strikes' were stuck above the door, between the windows, flashing red and white, with little bowling pins with faces on them that winked with each flash of colour. Now that was awesome. Winking pins? Who wouldn't love that.

I walked in first, followed by my sisters and Daisey and Chase. When I got inside, I could hear the sounds of people laughing and of balls knocking down pins near the lanes. All of us wandered toward the check-in to get bowling shoes. I hated bowling shoes. The actual bowling part was fun, but when it came to the shoes, I was grossed out. If I wanted to wear shoes that other people had worn, I would borrow a pair of Blossom's boots. Paying to wear previously worn shoes? Not cool.

Once almost all of us had on our disgusting shoes, we made our way towards the nearest lane. Blossom was dragging behind us, spraying at her red and white bowling shoes with a bottle of disinfectant that she had brought along. I wasn't surprised when she pulled the bottle out from her bag. Blossom hated germs and dirt. Still, some of us did enjoy a laugh at her expense as she held the shoes out in front of her as if they were bombs and drowned them in disinfectant.

"What's the teams?" Blossom asked as she finally put the shoes on. "They're going to be uneven."

Chase raised his hand. "I'm with Buttercup."

Walking forward, Daisey ran her hand along the big silver scoring machine in front of the lane. "Well how about we have Buttercup and Chase versus Blossom and Bubbles? And I'll keep the score."

"You don't want to play?" Bubbles asked Daisey.

Daisey's face dropped as she raised her hand, waving her perfectly manicured fingernails at us all. "These nails took me all morning and cost me twenty-five dollars. There's_ no_ way that I'm risking my tips in a bowling ball."

At her speech, Chase rolled his coffee coloured eyes. "You're unbelievable, Daze."

"I wouldn't mind risking my nails to punch you in the face, Royale."

Chase stuck his tongue out at Daisey like a child before sauntering towards the rack holding the bowling balls and examining it.

I felt my foot skid slightly and looked down to see that the laces were undone and I groaned. I was terrible at tying laces. Leaning down, I began trying to fix them once again. A sudden smell clouded my senses and I looked up at my sisters, my eyes dangerously narrow.

"Does anyone else smell Paco Rabanne?" I asked them.

Bubbles' nose scrunched. "Who do we know that wears Paco Rabanne?"

A sigh escaped from my pried lips. I knew who wore that particular brand all too well, after all, I had to deal with the intoxicating smell every single morning at five am. "You have got to be freaking kidding me."

And surely enough, I heard his voice. "Buttercup. Nice shoes."

I glanced up from my gross shoes and spotted Butch Jojo standing beside our lane. A pair of dark jeans hung low around his waist and a green tank clung to his body, showing off every single speck of his athletic arms and strong hands. I held back my vomit. Even the three Barbie-lookalikes in the next lane were eyeing him like a piece of meat.

They had zero self-respect.

Both of his brothers were by his side, like little lap dogs. Wearing a dark red shirt and black trousers, Brick wasn't looking at us, instead his eyes were scanning the room, most likely searching for his trusty roommate. And Boomer's eyes were on the floor, as usual. He was dressed less socially than his brothers, with a white shirt, blue pants, and a dark pea coat around his shoulders.

Thinking back on what Butch had said about my shoes, I bit back an insult at the comment. He was trying to rile me up. For once, I wasn't going to play along. This wasn't the night for arguments. I came out to have fun with my sisters and my new friends. He wasn't going to ruin that for me.

Instantly, I raised back to a standing position to look at them all head-on.

Blossom blinked at them. "What are you three doing here?"

"What?" Brick raised a brow. "We can't come to a public bowling alley?"

"No," I snapped back. "Now go away."

In that moment, I noticed Chase and Daisey coming back over to us all to see what was going on. While Daisey's eyes lit in surprise to see the Jojo brothers standing with us, Chase's didn't. His lips curved into a big grin as he strolled over to his friends. He placed a hand on Brick's shoulder and Brick smiled at him. I almost growled.

Why, oh why, did the only two friends that we had in all of Ashville have to be friends with our enemies?

It was Bubbles' bad luck. I blame her.

"Brick, you came," His Australian voice held glee. "Glad you could make it, mate."

Bubbles looked at Chase with big blue eyes. "You invited them?"

Chase nodded. "I asked them to come along this afternoon, but they said that they weren't going to show."

I turned my gaze to the Jojo brothers, not even attempting to hide my disdain. "What changed your minds?"

"We got bored." Butch answered me.

All of a sudden, Daisey clapped her hands and jumped up and down. "Oh, this is so perfect! We can do boys versus girls now!"

"No," I crossed my arms. "They won't be joining us."

"Will someone please tell me why you six all hate each other!?" Chase threw his arms in the air out of exasperation.

Daisey nodded and stood firmly beside Chase. "Me too. I'm officially curious."

I glanced at each of my sisters and they both shot me the exact same look. Our obvious hatred of the Jojo's was becoming a suspicion between our new friends, and that wasn't good. Suspicion always led to questions, and questions led to finding out the truth.

My sisters were clearly thinking the same thing; We had to just go with it, and pretend that everything was hunky-dory between us and the Jojo brothers.

Dammit.

A sigh escaped my lips. "They can join."

Daisey grinned and clapped again. "Awesome! This is going to be so fun!"

I bit back my annoyance at her enthusiasm and the fact that I had to play nice with my enemies for the night. I officially hated Chase Royale. Why did he have to invite them? My plan for a perfect night out with my sisters and my friends had literally been gate-crashed by our 'born-again' enemies. I was definitely not amused.

We all headed for the lane and took seats on the flashy red couches divided by the seat that the score-keeper sat on. One on side, my sisters and I sat, while on the other, the boys sat. Daisey instantly made her way towards the scoring machine and began to add all of our names in.

Peering at the screen, Blossom raised a brow. "Daisey, you aren't putting our actual names into the machine."

"I know that," Daisey grinned playfully. "This makes it funnier."

Brick instantly rolled his eyes. "You've put me under 'Captain Genius', haven't you?"

"Of course."

"You know," Brick began. "When you call me 'Captain Genius', you're actually complimenting me."

"Oh, I know that." Daisey replied.

"So why do you keep calling me it then?"

"Because you don't like it."

Brick narrowed his eyes and Daisey smirked back.

I took a look at the screen to see what she had put us all under. The first name I spotted was_ 'Bubbly'_ which I was assuming was Bubbles. Next I read _'Blossy',_ which was fairly obvious. Then I saw _'Butchie'_, and I almost cried from laughter. Butch wasn't amused with that one. The next was _'Rich Boy'_, for Chase, which I adored. The final one that I saw left me utterly confused.

"Um, who's Kangeroo?" I asked Daisey. She nodded her head towards Boomer and I pursed my lips in confusion. "And why is Boomer called 'Kangeroo'?"

Chase chuckled. "Back in Australia, we call kangaroo's 'Boomer'. She's been calling him that since we first met him."

I couldn't possibly hold back my laugher as I looked at Boomer's face. His eyes were narrow behind his blonde hair, and if looks could kill, I'd be kissing goodbye to my roommate. Shaking my head, I looked back up to the screen to see what she had put me under.

"Butters?" I deadpanned. "Really? Couldn't you come up with something less ridiculous?"

"Put her under 'Sunshine'," Butch said as he stood up from his seat and walked towards the lane.

I scowled at him. "Butters is fine."

The machine divided our names into teams, and once Daisey had put in her own name, we were ready to go. Chase's name was the first to show and so he began cracking his knuckles - I had no idea what he was planning to achieve by doing that. He stood before the ball dispenser and reached into the dark cavern to retrieve a ball.

Once he had the ball, he stood before the lane and aimed for the pins. The lanebed was made from light brown wood -although it looked like phenolic from where I was sitting- and it had that shiny quality that most lanes had.

I watched closely as Chase sent the big, glistening yellow bowling ball down the alley, and it ran down, knocking down nine out of the ten small, white pins at the end of the line.

Chase grinned. "Not bad."

I had to say that I was impressed. While Chase seemed to only care for football, and his ego was the size of the moon, his talents did not only lie in football. He went for his second go, taking another ball from the dispenser, and he managed to get the last pin.

We all stared as he made his way back to the boys, doing what I assumed was his 'happy dance', which in general was just throwing his arms in the air and swaying his thin hips. He looked genuinely insane, but I still laughed anyway.

Daisey told me that I was next, and I wasn't worried. I had bowled a lot back in Townsville when I was a younger. Dad would always take my sisters and I to the local bowling alley, and we would play until eventually, I had work to do. I knew that the Professor would let us win a lot of the time, but I still built up a good skill just from playing.

After retrieving a ball, I took my place at the start of the alley and made sure not to pass the black line dividing me from getting any closer. I aimed and shot without hesitation and watched as all ten pins fell to the floor before my eyes.

"You go, girl!" I heard Daisey praise. The saying didn't suit her at all.

I spun myself around and a smirk played at my lips as I looked at all of the boys. I was definitely going to enjoy beating them. "Good luck."

Butch narrowed his eyes at my mocking tone. "We don't need it."

Tilting my head, I passed him and returned to my seat. "Oh, we'll see."

Once I was seated, I tuned back into the action and watched Brick stand up and get ready for his turn. I would be surprised if Brick actually got a good score. For someone who spent all of his time with his face in a book, I assumed that he wouldn't have had much time for leisurely activity.

That was what I had assumed.

He proved me wrong from the second that he knocked over six pins. While six wasn't actually that good of a number, it was a heck of a lot better than what I had been expecting.

Throwing her head back, Daisey laughed. "I may have to change your nickname to 'Captain Loser',"

Brick did not look amused. "You're not funny."

Daisey simply rolled her eyes as Brick walked towards the dispenser and pulled out another ball. He managed to clear the embarrassment by getting a spare clearing the pins in the second frame- and he returned to his seat, a bored look plastered onto his serious face. He appeared to be the only one not having any amount of fun.

"Who's next.." Daisey's eyes scanned the screen in search for the next player. She turned to us and nodded towards my sister. "Bubbles."

I swallowed.

In all of my life I had known that Bubbles didn't enjoy sports, but bowling was the exception. She didn't hate bowling - but she was absolutely _terrible_ at it. Even with our dad trying to let her win, she still managed to lose just by sheer incompetence.

Watching in horror, I crossed my fingers and prayed for a miracle. If Bubbles was ever to get good at bowling, it had to be now. Time seemed to slow down as the threw the ball towards the pins, the ball landing on the aisle with a thud, and began rolling down hill.

Eight.

She hit eight freaking pins.

I didn't hold back from throwing my hands in the air and doing my own happy dance. When she turned around, Bubbles was smiling prettily, looking proud of herself. She had surpassed her best score of four pins, I would be proud of myself too.

"I did it!" Bubbles exclaimed in joy. I could practically feel her ego growing by the second. That wasn't a good thing. We already had one person with a massive ego in the room.

"You still have to hit the last two." Boomer reminded her.

Bubbles pouted as she walked over to get her second ball. "I still hit something."

I noticed Boomer smile at her and she simply ignored him. She had to teach me how to do that some day. Bubbles shuffled back over towards the isle and went again, this time only managing to hit one out of the two targets that were left.

_Brilliant._

She walked back over to us and took her seat beside me. Blossom looked over and smiled at her. "Nice job, Bubbles."

Daisey turned to the boys. "Butch, you're up."

Butch stood up and began to roll his shoulders and his neck as if he was getting ready for a boxing match. His eyes shot towards my sisters, Daisey and I, and he smiled a wicked, taunting smile.

"Watch how a pro does it." His deep voice was confident and cocky.

I snorted unattractively. "Don't make me laugh."

He strolled over in slow strides and picked up the first ball sitting in the dispenser. With the ball in hand, he prepared himself and pulled his arm back before pushing forward and releasing. I narrowed my eyes as they followed the ball.

A growl escaped my lips.

He hit every single pin.

"That was clearly just luck." I rolled my eyes as he strode back over.

"Don't make me laugh." He mimicked my voice, a smirk playing at his lips.

It took every ounce of will-power I had to stop me from throwing a bowling ball at his smug little face.

Daisey laughed at our antics. "Me next."

She slid out of her small red seat and moved for the aisle. I stared as she picked up a bright purple bowling ball and held it out in front of her as if it were a bomb. She looked ridiculous, and I could already hear Chase and Butch laughing in amusement.

I was beginning to think that Daisey hadn't previously lived in Australia, more Beverly Hills.

I shook my head. "Daisey, you're supposed to put your fingers through the holes."

She looked at me from behind her shoulder. "I told you, hell will freeze over before I risk my perfect tips in a bowling ball."

"Ha," I heard Butch laugh as he leaned back in his seat. "We are _so_ winning this."

Attempting to hold back my annoyance at Butch, I watched as Daisey made the shot. She looked like she was literally throwing a bomb onto the aisle. The ball hit the middle of the alley with a thud so loud that heads turned, and as soon as it made contact with the wood, the ball slid down the trench at the side.

I frowned as I watched the purple object roll down the gutter and out of sight. There was no way that I was losing to the Jojo brothers. I would probably cry if that happened, and it takes a lot to make me cry.

"Hmm," Daisey pouted her lips. "I guess my talents clearly do not lie in this sport."

"Get your head in the game, girl!" I called back. "Do you want to lose to boys?"

She turned around and put her hands on her hips. "My tips are a lot more important than my ego," She cast a glance to Chase. "Unlike some people."

Chase narrowed his eyes dangerously at her.

When she went again for her second turn, Daisey only managed to get two pins, which I guess was better than none, but it still sucked. I wasn't sure how someone could care about their fingernails so much. They were just fingernails, that was nothing. Losing to Butch Jojo, on the other hand, was everything.

Once Daisey had returned to her seat in front of the scoring machine and had added her score in, she called out the next name. "Boomer is next, guys."

I was intrigued as Boomer headed toward the isle. I knew that skills weren't affected by the 'counterpart bond', only personalities and traits, but I was just hoping that for once, skills were included too.

He had to be terrible so that I could win.

I crossed my fingers and watched as Boomer did his first go, and a sigh of relief escaped my lips when I saw how much he had scored.

"Three?" Butch exclaimed. "_Really?_"

Boomer turned around, looking unaffected by his bad score. "I don't like sports."

Butch pursed his lips. "Clearly." We all watched as he went again, and once more, he scored the exact same. Butch practically growled. "What is with you and the number three!?"

Rolling his dark blue eyes, Boomer walked back towards the boys. "Let it go, Butch."

"Blossy," Daisey sing-songed from her seat. "It's your turn."

I shot my sister an encouraging look. "Make us proud, sis."

She didn't seem very motivated. "I'll try."

Blossom strolled up to the alley and grabbed a ball. I bit my bottom lip nervously. Back when we used to bowl in Townsville, Blossom was always good at the game, but she was also so unenthusiastic that she would never win. If there wasn't something to read on the bowling ball, she wasn't interested.

Damn her and her love of boring things.

She threw the ball with absolutely no effort, and I swallowed. I really didn't want to lose to Butch. I still had a couple of days left of cleaning duty with him, and I didn't want to spend it by being taunted.

Blossom withdrew her hand and stared after the ball as it knocked into the pins until each and every white pin was lying on the ground.

_Happy days._

Turning herself around, Blossom blinked in surprise. "I was not expecting that."

"Ha!" I clapped happily. "We've got this in the bag!"

Bubbles leaned into me and raised her thin eyebrow. "Don't they have more points than we do?"

"You just had to ruin my moment, didn't you?" I deadpanned.

Throwing her head back, Daisey chuckled at us. "Alrighty, back to the start. Royale, go break a leg."

I looked over at the boys and watched Chase saunter away, and I could feel the smile on my face getting tighter and wider. And then I blinked. I was actually smiling. I was actually having fun. I was in a bowling alley, with all three of the Jojo brothers, spending time with my enemies, and I was smiling and having a good time.

No way.

I shook my head instantly.

Bowling with the Jojo's was _not_ supposed to be fun.

XoXoXoXoXo

21:42 p.m

The second that we had gotten back from Lucky Strikes, I had went straight to my bedroom. I had spent two hours with three boys that I despised and I had enjoyed it. That thought was terrifying enough, I didn't need to be around them any longer than need be. When I had lay on my bed, I was filled with stress - so I did what I always did when I felt stressed. I swam.

When I had gotten into the in-door swimming room, no one else was around, thankfully. It saved me the effort of scaring people out so that I could be alone. I liked to swim alone. There was something calming about swimming - soothing, even. And when other people basked in that joy, it wasn't as good for me. To me, calmness meant solitude.

I could feel the water rippling across my skin as I spread my arms out and swam faster and faster, heading for the deep end of the pool. As soon as I was in the zone, I wasn't thinking about all of my stress anymore, I was just thinking of the water and the waves. The water was warmer than I had thought it would be, and it made my skin tingle with each passing moment.

Before I knew it, I could feel the ache in my muscles, becoming too numb to continue. I hated it. I always felt weak when I swam now. Back before the loss of my powers I could go on for hours without feeling the strain all thanks to my powerful super-powered body. And now I couldn't, and it was vulnerability at its finest.

I pulled myself back up from underneath the water and began to run my hands through my soaking wet hair. I took a deep, calming breath, and closed my eyes to absorb the moment. And just when I was feeling a small sense of peace, I heard _his_ voice.

And just like that, my moment was ruined.

"You know, even with wet hair and a scowl on your face, you're still breathtaking." It was the voice of the person I least wanted to see. I was beginning to think that Bubbles had given me her case of back-luck, because that was all I had now.

My eyes slid open and I saw Butch Jojo standing beside the single white door, leaning on the tiled wall and staring right at me with those dark green eyes of his. He had changed back into his regular grey track trousers and green T-shirt, and his hair had lost its unnatural spike, making him look almost like a stranger.

How I wished that he was a stranger to me. It would make things so much easier.

As I felt a sting of unease in my stomach, I squinted my eyes at him. "How long have you been standing there?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Like two minutes."

I pursed my lips in anger. He had been watching me swimming for two freaking minutes. That thought alone made the ache in my stomach tighten until I could barely breathe. I instantly swam towards the nearest pool stairs and I climbed up them, water sliding from my hair and down my skin.

Making my way towards the long bench pushed up against the wall, I looked at Butch from the corner of my eye, making sure that he didn't move a single step. I snatched the cotton white towel sat on the bench and wrapped it around my body. I wasn't even on show, I was wearing a soft green one-piece, but I still wanted to cover up anyway.

Once I was in my towel, I looked at Butch from across the room and crossed my arms. "I'm really not in the mood to talk, Butch. I've seen your face enough for one day."

I should have been given a medal for that. That had to be the nicest way I could ever dismiss someone who I hated as much as him.

Butch's lips curved into a small, playful pout. "You should really be nicer to your cleaning buddy."

My eyes hardened on him. "We're _not_ cleaning buddies. We're not buddies at all. We're not anything," I shook my head in anger, damp black hair sticking to my face. "So just..get out of my face, alright?"

I made a move for the door when Butch stepped in front of it, blocking me from leaving. My eyes caught his and I took a deep breath. I tried to let the anger fade away and allow the calmness to take over but I couldn't. I was just so angry. Angry at Butch. Angry at myself. Angry at the situation. I didn't want to be angry anymore.

A low growl escaping from my throat, I sneered at Butch.

"Get. Out. Of. My. Way." I tensed each word to illustrate my seriousness, my eyes narrowing to look as threatening as physically possible.

Butch didn't budge. "I really think that we should talk about finding common ground now that we're forced to spend every morning with each other."

"We'll never be able to find common ground, Butch!" I exclaimed while throwing my arms in the air out of exasperation. "Now, get out of my way before I-"

"Before you what? Punch me, again?"

"I mean it, move-"

"Or what?"

I looked deep into Butch's eyes and I saw a challenge. I could tell that he was just trying to rile me up, to pull me into an argument, and I knew that I shouldn't, but I wanted to so desperately. I wanted to fight someone. I wanted to hurt Butch. The anger was literally eating away at me and I didn't understand why just being around him made me feel like that.

All I understood was that I had to let it out.

Raising my clenched fist, I thrust forward and went in for a punch, but before I could connect with his face, Butch held his palm out and caught my fist. He had been expecting it, clearly. I brought up my knee and aimed for his stomach, and this time he hadn't been expecting the hit. As my knee connected with him, he released my hand and I instantly took a step back.

For a moment I just looked at him, doubled over, pain evident on his face. My hands were shaking and my skin felt like it was on fire. He raised his head to look at me, and his eyes were so dark and filled with hate and respect..and hurt.

"You're not angry at me." He choked out in that deep voice of his.

My brows furrowed. "Yes, I am."

Butch shook his head and returned to a straight posture. "I can see right through you, Utonium. You've been looking for fights with me all week because seeing me reminds you just how much you miss being powerful and in control."

I froze at the truth in his words. Deep down, I knew what he was saying was true, but I didn't understand how he knew it too. Our eyes were trapped on each other and the tension was so thick that I could barely breathe. Every single bone in my body ached with vulnerability and confusion. When I was around Butch, it was like I started to change, like the old me was coming out, only more intense.

He made me feel _so_ damn alive.

"How would you know that?" I asked bitterly.

Butch's face grew serious. "Because I feel the same way."

I blinked, and then I swallowed, and the sound was so huge in the silence. I wasn't great at telling when people were being truly serious, but something was telling me that Butch was. When it came to our fights in Townsville, mine and Butch's were always more intense and almost..needed. We were each other's outlet. And we lost that outlet the second that Butch disappeared.

"No," I shook my head at him. "There's a difference between what you and I feel, Butch. When we fought, you were always powerful," I took a step forward. "But you were _never_ in control."

Butch slowly nodded and I blinked again. He wasn't going to argue?

His face hardened. "You can't argue your way into how it used to be. I'm not evil anymore."

"You know that I don't believe that."

"You don't have to believe it. One day you'll see it for yourself."

I laughed bitterly. "Some people are beyond change."

"Yeah, I know that," He took a step closer to me and I held my breath. He was so close. Too close. "But it's not _me_ who's beyond change. It's you."

Silence filled the air as Butch turned himself around and started to walk away from me, out of the room and into the hallway. I remained perfectly mute as I watched him go, and once he was out of my sight, I let out a breath that I had been holding in.

It was when he was gone that I remembered how I had felt when he provoked me. I wanted to punch him, to scream at him, to feel the power that I had lost. And I realised something. Being around Butch was dangerous.

He made me want to change back.

* * *

**~ Sorry for the long-ish wait. I'm personally not a fan of this chapter. I feel that the last scene could have been written with more depth but it's so hard to get into Buttercup's mind while trying to maintain her character at the same time. Oh well, maybe one day I'll get the hang of it xD ~**

**AN: Also, I just had to say that I know how bad the bowling scene was xD I had written that scene, slightly better, but then once I shut down my document, I forgot to save. I swear, I almost cried. Having to re-write it killed me, but I hope that it is not too disappointing!**

**Next Chapter - (Bubbles' Chapter) As her sisters begin to get suspicious of her constant absence, Bubbles decides to get rebellious with a certain Jojo brother and finally finds out where her old enemies disappeared to six years ago. Meanwhile, Daisey points something out to Bubbles that makes her see Boomer in a completely different way.**

**Please review, it will not take long! (:**

**Allie Peirce**


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